EFCC arraigns ex-banker, others for N12million fraud

Press statement from EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Tuesday, September 22, 2015 arraigned three former bankers - Rita Emmanuel, Orjiri Martins and Monday Chibueze Ben, before Justice G. C. Aguma of the State High Court, Port Harcourt, Rivers State on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy and stealing to the tune of N12,150,000. 

Emmanuel, a customer service manager and teller of a new generation bank, allegedly converted the sum of N6,075,000 belonging to some bank customers to personal use. The fraud was allegedly concealed by Martins and Ben. The trio, who were present in court, are alleged to have deliberately conspired to defraud the bank.

One of the charges read: “That you Rita Emmanuel, Orjiri Martins and Monday Chibueze Ben on or about the 3rd day of October, 2014 at the First City and Monument Bank Limited, Ikwere Road branch, Port Harcourt, Rivers State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did conspire with each other to commit felony to wit: stealing and thereby committed an offence contrary to, and punishable under Section 516A of the Criminal Code Law Cap C37 Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1990.”

Another charge reads: “That you Rita Emmanuel on or about the 3rd day of October, 2014 at the First City and Monument Bank Limited, Ikwere Road branch, Port Harcourt, Rivers State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, being the customer service manager and teller of the Said bank, did steal the sum of N6,075,000 by fraudulently converting the said amount which is cash deposits from various customers of the bank and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 383 (1) (a) and punishable under section 390 (B) of the Criminal Code Law Cap C37 Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1990.”

They pleaded not guilty to the charges.

In view of their plea, prosecuting counsel, U. R. Ewoh asked the court for a date to commence trial. Counsel for the 1st and 3rd accused persons, V. F. Ajoku, and Smart Ikenga for the 2nd accused person, however, prayed that the court should grant the accused bail.

Justice Aguma granted the accused bail in the sum of N3,000,000 and one surety each. The surety who must be resident in Rivers State must be a civil servant on Grade Level 14 or a Medical Doctor, their office, status, and address must be verified by the court and the passport of the accused persons should be deposited in the court.

The case was adjourned to November 4, 2015.
Media & Publicity 23rd September, 2015

Man in coma was awake for 12 years but couldn't move or speak

A man, Martin Pistorius, who slipped into a coma aged 12, has revealed the living nightmare of waking up from the coma only to find out that he was unable to move or communicate or do anything for himself for 12 years.
And to his horror, when he did awake, he was unable to communicate his return.
The South African man was diagnosed with a debilitating form of meningitis in the late 1980s and was left unable to move, speak or even make eye contact.

His parents, Rodney and Joan Pistorius, were left to do everything for him, from bathing and feeding, helping him pee and poop to turning him in bed and were advised he would soon die.

It was such a tough life that Joan told NPR.org that she remembers looking at Martin one day and saying: "I hope you die."

And yet from the age of 14 or 15 to now 39 years old, Martin was awake.

He told NPR: "I was there, not from the very beginning, but about two years into my vegetative state I began to wake up. I was aware of everything, just like any normal person.

"Everyone was so used to me not being there that they didn't notice when I began to be present again.

"The stark reality hit me that I was going to spend the rest of my life like that – totally alone."

Martin said all he could do was "think" and his thoughts became increasingly darker as time went on.
So he decided to block it out and stop thinking.

He said: "You simply exist. It's a very dark place to find yourself because, in a sense, you are allowing yourself to vanish."

Martin's brain began functioning fully at the age of 24 and his body followed at the age of 24.

Martin now functions with very little  disability and has also published a book, Ghost Boy: My Escape From a Life Locked Inside My Own Body.

No need to sell a kidney! Sperm banks offers College graduates money to buy IPhone 6 in exchange for sperm

Many Chinese have joked about selling their kidneys for Apple products but it seems there is a better and less riskier alternative. A sperm bank in Shanghai, China is inviting qualified college graduates over 5’5 tall and free of disease to donate sperm in exchange for money to buy an iPhone 6S.

"No need to sell a kidney…Shanghai sperm bank can make your iPhone 6S dream come true," the ad reads."

The sperm bank ad, which is offering to pay $942 for 17 milliliters of semen, has generated massive social media conversation. Sperm banks are hoping the pitch, which comes ahead of the release of the iPhone 6S on 25 September, will help fix a shortage in donors.

The Shanghai Sperm Bank is promising 6,000 yuan for 17 millilitres of semen for those who qualify to donate. Donors needs to be university educated, disease-free and over 5 foot 5.

"This is going to make me really suspicious of anyone with an iPhone 6S" said one user on Weibo, China’s Twitter.

According to a spokesperson with the Shanghai Sperm Bank, the campaign has worked well so far, raising awareness and attracting potential donors, the state news agency Xinhua reported.

A poll conducted on Sina Weibo shows that Chinese social media users are split on the appropriateness of the campaign with close to 20% calling it unseemly and another 27% saying they will donate immediately. "I need the address to Hubei Sperm Bank now please" said one user.

Photo: People queue outside an Apple Store in Naijing

Couple rape teenage boy in a foursome while their children slept nearby

A Missouri couple allegedly held a 16-year-old boy down and raped him as part of a foursome also involving a young woman, police said.
Laura Bentley was charged last week with sodomy, while Jason Schlueter was charged with sodomy and rape, police records show.
The teen told police he was raped by the couple in their Carrollton home in late August or early September, while their four young children were home, according to charging documents.
He said he told them he wasn’t interested in group sex, but Schlueter allegedly held him down while Bentley and the other woman, who is under 21, raped him.

One of the couple’s children, a 6-year-old girl, told police she was spanked after waking up and witnessing the sex. She later identified by name all four of the people involved in the alleged rape.
Bentley told police her young daughter witnessed a different threesome, which did not involve the teen boy, records show. But Schlueter admitted to the foursome, while still contending he never touched the boy and “did not know” if Bentley did.

It’s unclear how the couple knew the teen or the other woman. It's also unclear if the woman will face any charges.

One neighbor said he wasn’t surprised to learn of sick activities happening in the household.

“It is usually wild down there,” the neighbor told KCTV. “Kids would run up and down the stairs yelling and screaming and knocking on doors. It was pretty hectic sometimes.”

It is not yet known if the other woman will face charges relating to the incident.

Heartbroken Kourtney Kardashian breaks down in tears over Scott Disick cheating

Keeping Up With The Kardashians viewers will get to see how hurt Kourtney Kardashian was after she learned of Scott Disick's cheating rumours via Daily Mail.

In a preview clip from an upcoming episode of the E! series,Kourtney, the mum-of-three, who broke up with her boyfriend of nine years this summer, couldn’t hide her heartbreak as pictures emerged of Scott getting close to his rumoured ex-girlfriend Chloe Bartoli in Monaco.

Momager Kris could be seen sitting at the table with a tearful Kourtney and Kim and she got very angry when she read the story of Scott's romance online.
Her Mum Kris Jenner said: “What a piece of s**t!”

A devastated Kourtney then said to her sister Kim.

“I’ve worked so hard to keep this family together,” she tells her as she wipes away tears.

"Kourtney has always taken Scott back and been by his side, but now with three kids it has gotten old," a source said at the time.

"Kourtney has to do what's best for the kids."

But despite Scott, 32, missing his family, he is not prepared to change his partying ways.

A source said: "Scott misses his family, but it's not enough to motivate him to change. He doesn't have the constitution to cure himself of his issues."

Saraki is our choice, no political trial will change our opinion- Senators declare

Members of the Senate have said no political, vindictive and mischievous trial will make them change their opinion about Senator Saraki being their president. The senators said this in a statement they released yesterday which was signed by Senator Ibrahim Abdullahi Danbaba

"We also want to state here, on behalf of our colleagues, that the Senate remains solidly behind Senator Saraki and we express our unalloyed support for his leadership. We reiterate the fact that he is our choice for the post of Senate President and no politically motivated, mischievous and vindictive trial will change our opinion of him." the statement read

Miley Cyrus nude photos no longer has shock value - ASA

Advertising watchdogs have cleared a poster featuring the pop star and actress of allegations it was overtly sexual and offensive. The billboard featured Miley Cyrus wearing a low cut bodysuit lying on her back with her legs apart against a mirrored wall looking into the camera.

Another version of the poster, which was promoting the ‘Viva Glam’ make-up range for MAC, used a similar image and partially showed a reflection of her crotch in a mirror.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received complaints from just three members of the public, who said the image was overtly sexual and therefore offensive.

Two people said the image was unsuitable for a poster than was likely to be seen by children.

The singer has built an image based around shock and sexuality, often wearing very little in her own publicity pictures and at awards ceremonies in order to boost her notoriety, profile and sales.

But, the ASA has ruled that this particular image did not go too far and there was no good reason to ban it

Amaechi sues PDP over allegations of corruption, demands N300m damages

Immediate past Rivers state governor, Rotimi Amaechi has filed a suit at an Abuja High court against the PDP in Rivers state, the state party chairman Felix Obuah and two others over allegations that he embezzled $757 million(N80 billion) while he served as governor of the state.

In a statement he released yesterday September 22nd, Amaechi pointed out that the state PDP had on August 6, and August 21, 2015, alleged that he stole the sum and stashed them in an account in his name in Bancorp Bank in Minnesota, United State of America.

“The PDP also alleged that Amaechi had embezzled millions of dollars of Rivers State money and stashed the money in other foreign accounts in his name, including a bank in Switzerland. The PDP claimed that the various Amaechi foreign accounts were revealed and blown open by Christine Amanpour of America’s Cable News Network. The PDP went further to claim that Bancorp Bank, Minnesota, had written to President Muhammadu Buhari that part of the funds was to purchase a residence for Amaechi in America and that they (Bancorp Bank) intend to return the stolen funds to Nigeria. Against PDP, Felix Obuah and two others, Amaechi is seeking the sum of N300, 000, 000, 000.00 for general damages done to him and defamation of his character, reputation and person.” In the statement, Amaechi said these allegations have caused him great pain as he had been “inundated, bombarded and confronted by several persons who expressed lack of respect, loss of faith in him and who no longer regard him as trustworthy and now view him as a common criminal.”.

I am being tried because I am Senate President - Saraki

Senator Bukola Saraki says he is being tried at the Code of Conduct Tribunal because he is the Senate President. In a personal statement he signed yesterday September 22nd, Saraki said

"I reiterate my belief that the only reason while I am going through this trial is because I am senate president. If I were to be just a senator, I doubt if anybody will be interested in the asset declaration form I filled over twelve years ago".

Graphic photos: Trailer kills conductor in Lagos this morning

‎A trailer conductor was killed this morning at Coker along the Badagry expressway in Lagos. Eyewitnesses say the unidentified conductor had called on a trailer driver to help him move his own trailer forward so he can offload the goods in his trailer. As the driver tried moving the vehicle, he suffered brake failure and pressed the conductor against another trailer. The deceased died instantly.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger splits from wife

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, 65, has split from his wife Annie, 59. The couple got married in 2010 but have been together for years and have an 18 year old daughter together. They are said to have agreed a financial package and divided up their assets after Arsene filed for legal separation in a French court.

Wenger, who previously admitted that his high pressured job with Arsenal had put pressure on his marriage has not been seen with Annie since 2013, which led to speculations for months that all was not well between the couple. Their split have now been confirmed.

Photo: Deputy Vice Chancellor, his 14 year old son and four others die in car crash along Lagos-Ibadan expressway

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor-designate of Fountain University, Osogbo, Prof. Abdul Hakeem Mobolaji, his 14 year old son, Muhammad and four others died in a car crash along the Lagos Ibadan expressway on Sunday September 20th. 

 

According to The Nation, the professor of Econometrics was traveling with his two sons, the late Muhammad and Abdul-Hafiz as well as one of his friend, Mr Abdul-Rasheed Attah, a lawyer, when a commercial bus rammed into his SUV after overtaking another vehicle on the narrow road.

The road had been partitioned by the contractor working on it. Professor Mobolaji and his son died on the spot. His friend Attah and the late Mobolaji’s second son, AbdulHafiz were injured. Attah immediately called a relative and gave his phone to a woman to inform the person of the accident. Shortly after, he and Abdul Hafiz went into a coma. Four people including the driver of the passenger bus died in the accident.

Speaking on the sad incident, the deceased professor's son, Abdul Azeez said "Who will take care of us now that he is late? I was expecting to link up with him at Fountain University today (Monday). I was calling his phone on Sunday when I didn’t hear from him whether he has reached Ibadan where he was expected to pick other family members but he wasn’t picking his calls. I called him severally up to 30 times but no one was picking the call. I called the MD of Al Barakah Microfinance Bank to tell him that I have been calling my father but he was not picking his call that he should help me call him but later he came back with some people to announce his death that Allah has taken him back. I pray to Almighty Allah to grant the family the fortitude to bear the loss because he was the bread winner of the family and no one else.”.

The late professor and his 14 year old son were on Monday buried in Akinyele Local Government Area, Oyo State.