Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, JULY 31, 2013—7
Woman sets 11-yr-old maid ablaze over piece of meat zAs doctors place victim on danger list
Police nab 4 kidnap suspects in Enugu
BY EVELYN USMAN
L
n, yesterday. PHOTO: NAN
Man in court for allegedly stealing colleague’s tricycle
L
AGOS — A 33-YEAROLD man, Kenneth Ugwuanyi, Monday, appeared before an Ojo Chief Magistrates’ Court, Lagos, for allegedly stealing a tricycle belonging to one Adewale Bamgbose, his colleague. Ugwuanyi, a tricycle operator, resides at the Shibiri area of Ojo in Lagos, and is standing trial on a charge of stealing. The prosecutor, Mr Godwin Eze, alleged that the accused, on July 15, moved the tricycle of the complainant away from where it was parked. According to him, the complainant parked the tricycle in front of his residence at Ilaje Street, Ojo, Lagos. The prosecutor said the tricycle, with registration number UMH 247 DC, was later recovered from the accused, who was then arrested. Eze said the tricycle was worth N430,000. According to the prosecutor, the offence contravenes the provision of Section 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The law prescribes three years imprisonment for anyone convicted of stealing. However, the accused pleaded not guilty to the charge. The Magistrate, Mr Teslimi Shomade, granted him bail in the sum of N430,000 (the value of tricycle), with two sureties in like sum and adjourned the case to August 30.
AGOS — POLICEMEN at Bode Thomas division of Lagos State command, have arrested a woman who allegedly set her 11-year-old house maid ablaze in Surulere area of Lagos, for stealing a piece of meat from her pot of soup. The maid identified as Ita Bassey-Eno who reportedly escaped death by the whiskers, is currently at the Burns and Trauma Centre of the Gbadaga General Hospital, with doctors battling to save her life. Although her mistress, a staff nurse at an undisclosed hospital in Surulere, Mrs Nkese Iroakazi, reportedly denied the allegation at the police station, the ailing girl was said to have managed to state that she allegedly poured kerosene on her before striking a stick of matches to set her on fire. The incident, as gathered, occurred last Saturday at 7, Adeniran Ogunsanya Street, after Ita rushed out of the apartment with fire on her, apparently in an attempt to plunge into a gutter. Unfortunately, she reportedly fell before she could get to the gutter. One of the residents was said to have succeeded in putting out the fire with the aid of a fire extinguisher, before she was rushed to the hospital.
Eyewitness account A resident who simply identified herself as Morakinyo told Vanguard: “I was just alighting from the bus when I saw people gathered in front of the building. When I got there, I saw Ita whom
E
The victim, Ita Bassey-Eno on her hospital bed...yesterday. we all call Eno on the floor. Then, the flame had been put out. “Two men who attempted to carry her into a car could not because the skin at that time had peeled off. They had to get a slab, placed her on it and rushed her to the hospital. From what I gathered, the girl has spent barely one month in Lagos before the incident. “She was brought from her village in Akwa Ibom State last month alongside another girl called Happiness. Since then, we have not seen either of them going to school. “We heard that while Happiness was in the sitting room, there was a cry from Ita in the kitchen and before she (Happiness) knew what was happening, Ita rushed out of the kitchen and straight to the road shouting for help. “How could someone who has children of her own treat another’s like this? It was even the residents that alerted policemen who came to pick Mrs Iroakazi.”
95% burns When Vanguard visited the hospital, yesterday, a doctor who spoke on condition of anonymity expressed fear about the victim’s condition, revealing that she suffered 95 per cent burns. “It will take a miracle for her to survive. In any case, we are trying all we can to ensure she gets back on her feet. That will entail some surgeries because her private part was badly damaged. “Currently, she wears pampers and that area needs immediate surgery after the injuries would have healed.” Ita was sighted with bandage all over her body, except her face and feet. When a nurse approached her to administer the day’s treatment, she groaned in pains. As at 3 p.m yesterday, police sources told Vanguard that the suspect would be transferred to the state Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba for further investigation.
Traffic snarl along Airport road, coming from Murtala Muhammed International, MMIA, Lagos due to bad portion on the road. Photo: Diran Oshe.
NUGU — OPERA TIVES of the antikidnapping unit of the Enugu State police command have apprehended four suspected kidnappers who specialize on threat kidnap calls and messages to their victims. Information from Office of the state Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Ebere Amarizu, yesterday, had it that the suspects who were nabbed recently by the operatives had allegedly threatened to kidnap one of their victims living at Trans Ekulu axis of Enugu. According to the PPRO, the suspects had told the fellow via several telephone calls to consider himself a kidnapped person should he fail to make reasonable amount of money available to them. “Following intelligence gathering and monitoring, the suspects, who gave their names as Igbokwe Onyinyechi Sunday, Ejike Ibe, Belummuo Alexander Chikwado and Zeribe Chinonso Christopher were nabbed and are now helping the police in their investigations.” Similarly, operatives of Nsukka Police Division have nabbed one Onyeneke Eze also known as EkeNweze, said to be a notorious robbery suspect on the wanted list of the police over his nefarious activities within Nsukka and environs. The suspect, according to the command spokesman, is being accused of murder, robber y and other criminal acts. He was arrested by the operatives based on information received from members of the public, and he is also currently assisting the police in their investigations. Meanwhile, the state Commissioner of Police Abubakar Adamu Mohammed, has applauded efforts of his operatives and that of members of the public, saying their cooperation is yielding tremendous result in the fight against crime in the state.