NDLEA nabs church GO, student for drug trafficking (Punch)
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, have arrested the founder and General Overseer of Seraphic and Sabbath Assembly, Lagos, High Priest Nnodu Azuka; a student of Emmanuel College of Theology, Samanta, Ibadan, Udezuka Udoka, and their freight agent, Oyoyo Obasi, over attempts to export methamphetamine and skunk consignments concealed in kegs of palm oil through the NAHCO export shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja Lagos to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, The PUNCH reports.
Nnodu was arrested on Saturday, February 11 at his Seraphic and Sabbath Assembly church located at No 1, Sabbath Close, Ijesha area of Lagos following the arrest of two suspects – Oyoyo Obasi and the theology student, Udezuka Udoka on Thursday, February 9 at the Lagos airport in connection with the seizure of 283 parcels of skunk weighing 14.90 kilograms and 204 grams of methamphetamine concealed in four 25-litre kegs of palm oil for export to Dubai.
The Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, revealed this on Sunday in a statement obtained by our correspondent. Read more
Remanded in prison twice for stealing, man arrested again for same offence (Tribune)
A 27-year-old man, Asimiyu Biodun, is not a stranger to Abolongo Correctional Centre in Oyo State. He had been remanded in the correctional facility two times when he could not fulfil bail conditions after being charged to court at different times but on the same offence of alleged stealing of cables from a company in Ibadan, Oyo State, where he was a machine operator.
But it seems as if Biodun had yet to learn his lessons as he was again arrested by the Security Surveillance Team of Oluyole Local Government Area of the state last Saturday for allegedly stealing two cylinders from a panel beater’s shop at Academy area, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
The commandant of the surveillance team, Olusegun Idowu, who spoke with Sunday Tribune, said that the suspect’s deed was uncovered when his team was on the search for another suspected thief. Read more
Cubana Chief Priest vows to reward teenager at Obi’s Lagos rally (Vanguard)
Notable socialite, Pascal Okechukwu, popularly known as Cubana Chief Priest, has promised to help the teenage boy who stood in front of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi’s moving convoy at a Lagos rally on Saturday.
Obi’s campaign rally in the country’s commercial capital was filled with ecstatic moments for his supporters as a boy identified as Yusuf Alami, beaming in exhilaration stood in front of Obi’s vehicle.
The photo and video of Alimi, where he raised his hands to show his support for Obi went viral on social media on Saturday. Read more
Buba Galadima: How Buhari fired my uncle over naira redesign in 1984 (DailyTrust)
Buba Galadima, a chieftain of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), has narrated how President Muhammadu Buhari reportedly sacked one of his uncles over naira redesign in 1984.
Buhari, a retired Army major general, served as the country’s military head of state from 31 December 1983 to 27 August 1985, after taking power in a military coup d’état.
Speaking in an interview on Trust TV’s Daily Politics, Galadima commented on the current hardship in the land as a result of naira redesign policy. Read more
New Naira: Police warn miscreants against vandalisation of banks, ATMs (Punch)
As part of efforts to prevent the vandalisation of bank properties due to the scarcity of the new naira notes, the Bayelsa State Police Command has promised to ensure adequate security in banks and Automated Teller Machines across the State.
Bayelsa police command, Ben Nebolisa Okolo, ordered Divisional Police Officers and other policemen to be observant and watch out for miscreants, while warning residents of the state to shun any form of violence and destruction of properties.
“Miscreants, under any guise, are hereby warned to desist from carrying out any unlawful assembly to unleash violence in the state, as the command will not allow any person(s) or group of persons to truncate the relative peace being enjoyed in the state,” it read. Read more
AIG Jimeta dies after a brief illness (Channels)
The Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Delta and Bayelsa, Lawan Tanko Jimeta, is dead.
Channels Television gathered that AIG Jimeta died on Sunday morning at the Benin Teaching Hospital after a brief illness.
A post by the spokesman for Bauchi State Police Command, Ahmed Wakil, confirmed AIG Jimeta’s death. Read more
DPO, 4 others killed by bandits in Niger (ThisDay)
The Divisional Police Officer for Paiko police station, Superintendent of Police Mukhtar Abbas and four other policemen have been killed by bandits in Niger State
The policemen were killed when they were mobilised to counter the attack on the Kwakuti Djadugbe Market on Saturday.
Police Public Relations Officer Niger State Police Command DSP Wasiu Abiodun who confirmed the tragedy in a statement made available to newsmen on Sunday however said some of the bandits were neutralised. Read more
Over 50k APC supporters to storm Tinubu rally in Port Harcourt, says PCC (Independent)
It promises to be a festival of overwhelming solidarity as over 50,000 supporters of the All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu storm the Elekiah stadium in Port Harcourt for his campaign rally.
The Rivers State chapter of Ahmed Bola Tinubu Presidential Campaign Council, PCC, said that it has mobilized about 50,000 persons across the twenty three local government areas of Rivers State to attend the presidential rally.
The rally which is billed to hold on 15th of February, 2023 was given the needed blessing when Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State last week approved the State owned Yakubu Gowon Stadium as venue for the presidential rally. Read more
Celine Dion’s fans wish her well as she returns to social media for a special reason (Hello!)
Celine Dion has been keeping a low profile since being diagnosed with Stiff Person Syndrome last year, which has caused her to take a break from performing.
However, over the weekend, the “My Heart Will Go On” hitmaker took to Instagram via her team to share memories of happier times in her music career ahead of Valentine’s Day.
The nostalgic post celebrated love while sharing some exciting news for all Celine fans. Read more
Mike Shinoda suggests that new Linkin Park music is possible (NME)
Mike Shinoda has hinted at the possibility of new music from Linkin Park.
Linkin Park last released an album in 2017 with ‘One More Light’, but the band have been on hiatus since the death of vocalist Chester Bennington later that year.
Last May, the rest of the band said they would be communicating with fans “a little more regularly” but Mike Shinoda warned fans not to “start up the hype train” during a Twitch stream. “We talk every few weeks [but] there’s no tours, there’s no music, there’s no albums in the pipeline. Just keep in your mind that that is not happening,” he added. Read more
Agents of SHIELD star Dichen Lachman joins new Planet of the Apes movie (DigitalSpy)
Planet of the Apes’ new movie has been a long time coming, having been announced in 2019, but is finally getting its wheels in motion.
The film, called Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, is set to release in 2024 and already has a slew of stars attached to it.
And, in the latest casting news, Agents of SHIELD star Dichen Lachman is booked to play an as-of-yet unknown role. Read more
Former Eminem stunt double Ryan Shepard fatally hit by truck (NYPost)
A former stunt double for the rapper Eminem died after being struck by a pickup truck while trying to cross the street.
Ryan Shepard, 40, had toured as a stand-in for Slim Shady in his 2002 Anger Management Tour, and also flew into the MTV Movie Awards as the rapper’s superhero alter-ego Rapper Boy, TMZ reported.
He was rushed to a hospital following the tragic accident in Washington state last month but could not be resuscitated, his brother told the outlet. Read more
Sheriff says outcome of search for missing actor Julian Sands ‘‘may not be what we would like’’ (Deadline)
The county sheriff’s department in Southern California has given an update on its search for British actor Julian Sands – a month after he was reported missing in the Mount Baldy region of the San Gabriel mountains.
A spokesperson for the sheriff’s department said on Saturday:
“Regarding the search for Julian Sands, we remain hopeful, but know the outcome may not be what we would like.
“Conditions on Mt Baldy remain a danger and our aviation division still patrols the area when they are available. We also plan to search the area by ground in the future.” Read more
Charli XCX criticises BRITs all-male Artist Of The Year shortlist (NME)
Charli XCX has criticised the BRIT Awards for their all-male Artist Of The Year shortlist at the 2023 event.
Nominees for the awards were announced in January and in the UK Artist Of The Year category, Central Cee, Fred Again.., George Ezra, Harry Styles and Stormzy were all nominated.
It was the second year that the awards abandoned gendered categories in favour of gender neutral ones, but the male-dominated shortlist for Artist Of The Year was heavily criticised. Read more
Building contractors arrested in Turkey as death toll passes 28k, 6 days after earthquake (ITV)
Turkish officials have detained or issued arrest warrants for some 130 people allegedly involved in shoddy and illegal construction methods, as the earthquake death toll surpasses 28,000.
Rescuers on Sunday continued to pull a few survivors from the rubble, six days after twin earthquakes that hit southeastern Turkey and northern Syria collapsed thousands of buildings.
The death toll from the 7.8-magnitude quake has risen to 28,191 with figures expected to continue to grow as the odds of finding more survivors quickly fades. Read more
Joshua admits money motivates him (Punch)
Nigerian-born boxer Anthony Joshua honestly admitted that money is motivating him ahead of his fight with Jermaine Franklin at the O2 Arena in London.
The former two-time unified heavyweight champion is keen to get his career back on track by beating Franklin on April 1 after suffering consecutive defeats to champion Oleksandr Usyk.
During a press conference to promote his fight with Franklin, Joshua was asked by boxing promoter Eddie Hearn what was motivating during this pivotal time in his career.
“Money,” Joshua said repeatedly before Hearn had even finished asking the question. “I like making money. Straight up. Like, this is a prizefighting sport. Read more
NFF chiefs, NIKE top officials meet in Amsterdam (Sun)
In another round of sponsor-appreciation, top officials of the Nigeria Football Federation visited the Euro-Africa headquarters of sports kit manufacturing behemoth, NIKE in Amsterdam,
The Netherlands on Friday.
Discussions centred around the support that the bodywear and footwear giant has been providing for the National Teams of Nigeria since its latest partnership with the NFF, and assurance by the football-governing body that it will put measures in place to ensure that NIKE nets even more leverage and exposure from the partnership.
President of NFF, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and the General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi met with NIKE’s chieftains at the company’s Amsterdam headquarters, with Uwe Gartner, who replaced Ms Tina Salminen as Sports Marketing Director (Africa), also present. Read more
Kylian Mbappe sends strong PSG message as fresh Neymar feud threatens dressing room (Mirror)
Kylian Mbappe has urged his Paris Saint-Germain teammates to “stay strong and united” after Neymar was involved in a heated dressing room clash on Saturday.
PSG’s domestic slump of form continued on Saturday with a limp 3-1 loss at Monaco in Ligue 1, leading to Neymar reportedly being highly critical of teammates Vitinha and Hugo Ekitike. It is also claimed that Neymar and club captain Marquinhos clashed with Luis Campos, who plays an influential role at the club.
It is the latest indication of a fractured dressing room, coming in the aftermath of defender Presnel Kimpembe confirming he was “not made aware” of Mbappe having replaced him as the club’s vice-captain at the start of the campaign. Read more
Referee chief apologises to Arsenal and Brighton over ‘‘significant’’ VAR errors (Standard)
The Premier League’s referee chief Howard Webb has contacted both Arsenal and Brighton to apologise for “significant errors in the VAR process” following controversial decisions on Saturday.
Ivan Toney’s controversial equaliser for Brentford at the Emirates Stadium was allowed to stand while Pervis Estupinan’s opener at Crystal Palace was disallowed due to “human error”, the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) confirmed in a statement.
Toney’s goal meant that Arsenal dropped points in their pursuit of a first league title in almost 20 years before Manchester City face Aston Villa on Sunday. Read more
Conor McGregor posts fitness update after admitting ”trauma” from car smash (DailyStar)
Conor McGregor has admitted to suffering “trauma” following a crash after confirming he will return to the UFC this year to take on Michael Chandler.
”The Notorious” was out cycling in his homeland last month when a car driver inadvertently hit him from behind, sending him sprawling. McGregor later posted disturbing video footage of the incident, with the 34-year-old clearly shaken up in the aftermath.
But despite announcing he will take on American fighter Chandler, with the date and venue to be decided, McGregor has revealed he’s still struggling from the collision. And early on Sunday morning, he posted a picture to his 46 million followers of him receiving cupping therapy on his right shoulder. Read more
George Russell offers advice to Mick Schumacher as Mercedes reserve driver (PlanetF1)
Mick Schumacher is a new face at Mercedes, and George Russell believes putting in the work is the way to make a perfect start.
For the past two seasons Schumacher held a race seat, his first in Formula 1, at Haas, partnering Nikita Mazepin in 2021 as part of an all-rookie line-up, and then the experienced Kevin Magnussen in 2022.
It was certainly a slow burner for Schumacher and his Formula 1 career, a trend which followed him up from the junior series, but as the 2022 campaign progressed his improved performance looked like it could be enough to convince Haas to give him a third season. Read more