Ibadan Market Fire Victims Get N10m From Ajimobi

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has disbursed N10 million to traders of Aleshinloye Market, Ibadan, whose shops were gutted by fire recently.

The governor, while presenting the cheques to the traders at the weekend, said that the gesture was in fulfilment of his earlier promise to assist the affected traders to cushion the effect of the losses they suffered as a result of the fire disaster.

He commended the traders for their immense contributions to the socio-economic development of the state, adding that his administration would not relent in its efforts at ensuring improved living conditions of the people of the state.

The special adviser to the governor on media, Dr Festus Adedayo, in a statement in Ibadan, the state capital on Sunday, said the Ajimobi administration had earmarked N300 million as interest-free loans to assist traders in the state, while markets had been provided for the traders who were removed from the streets.

Ajimobi urged the traders to continue to support the urban renewal programme of his administration and to continue to sustain the existing peace in the state.

Court Confirms 5 Death Sentences in Afghan Rape Case

KABUL, Afghanistan — An Afghan appeals court confirmed death sentences on Monday against five of the seven defendants in a notorious robbery and rape case, despite their claims that their confessions were extracted through torture.

For the other two defendants, the court found insufficient evidence to justify the death penalty, so it reduced their sentences to 20 years’ imprisonment.

The seven men were accused of dressing in police uniforms and stopping a caravan of cars returning from a wedding in the Paghman district, less than half an hour’s drive from Kabul; robbing the occupants and raping four of the women by the roadside.

The Kabul police department was under enormous public pressure to solve the case, which prompted national outrage and revulsion. But women’s rights activists have noted that the outrage was less an expression of concern about the women’s welfare than about the perceived dishonor to the victims’ husbands.

Explosives Seized and 19 Arrested in Suspected Plot in Uganda

KAMPALA, Uganda — The police in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, seized “substantial amounts of explosives” and suicide vests in raids on what they said was a terrorist cell with links to the Shabab, a militant group based in Somalia that was planning an imminent attack, a Ugandan official said in an interview on Sunday.

The police arrested 19 people in the operation on Saturday, and Information Minister Rose Namayanja urged the public to “remain vigilant” as Uganda continues its investigation.

“The operation is still going on,” Ms. Namayanja said. “We just want to ensure that we exhaust all the leads so that there are no more terrorist cells.”

Ugandan authorities say they have increased security at hotels and other important sites, including Entebbe International Airport, since making the arrests.

Last week, a senior Shabab official said that the Shabab would attack Americans in New York and Washington and “capture Kenya and Uganda.”

“Anything could have happened” if the plot had not been foiled, Ms. Namayanja said.

She said the government believed that the Kampala cell had ties to the Shabab, but did not provide evidence linking the two, saying only that Shabab fighters had attacked Uganda before.

Kenya is preparing to mark the first anniversary of a Shabab attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall in which 67 people were killed.

In 2010, the Shabab bombed restaurants in Uganda where people were watching a World Cup soccer match on television.

Both Kenya and Uganda contribute troops as part of the African Union peacekeeping force battling the Shabab in Somalia.

The militant group has threatened more attacks since the killing of its leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, in American airstrikes this month.

Last week, the group attacked two military convoys near the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and on Saturday gunmen killed a senior Somali national security officer in his car, according to local police officials and a Shabab spokesman.

Man Electrocuted In Lagos While Vandalising Transformer

A man has been found electrocuted in Lagos, while trying to vandalise a power transformer in Lonlo area of Iju-Ishaga, Lagos.

According to reports, the deceased who was wearing a blue shirt and blue jeans trousers, apparently hid under the cover of darkness and power failure to remove the steel covering of the power equipment. But while he was it, power was restored and there was reportedly a spark from the transformer.

Passers-by who initially assumed he was an official of the Ikeja Power Distribution Company, later on close observation found out he had been electrocuted.

Police sources at Iju told Vanguard that the local government council had been informed towards removing the corpse.

Cardinal Jorge Mejia’s Vatican Car Seized In France With Cocaine

A car bearing the diplomatic plates of the Vatican has been reportedly stopped in France with four kilograms of cocaine on board.

The car — which also contained 200 gram of cannabis — belonged to 91-year-old Argentinian cardinal Jorge Mejia, emeritus librarian at the Holy See, who retired in 2003 and who is currently bedridden.

Pope Francis, a fellow Argentinian, visited Mejia, who was confined to a hospital in Rome after a heart attack, just two days after being elected.

French radio reported that the cardinal’s private secretary entrusted the vehicle to two Italian men to take it for its annual check-up.

The two men promptly drove to Spain to buy the drugs, thinking that they would be protected by the diplomatic plates, according to RTL radio — a scenario not yet confirmed by legal sources.

The pair were picked up on Sunday at a toll station near Chambery in the French Alps on their way back.

Neither of the men has a Vatican diplomatic passport so the Vatican is not directly implicated, French legal sources say.

The Vatican confirmed that the car had been stopped in France with the drugs on board but stressed that no staff were involved in the incident.

Jet Impounded In South Africa For Carrying $9.3m- Ayo Oritsejafor Admits Ownership

President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor has claimed ownership of the jet impounded in South Africa for bearing $9.3 million meant for arms purchase.

Oritsejafor’s church also confirmed that the pastor owned the jet. “On behalf of Pastor Oritsejafor, we can confirm that although he holds an interest in Eagle Air, the aircraft in question is not operated by Pastor Oritsejafor,” the statement by The Word of Life Bible Church said. The aircraft was leased to, and is operated by Green Coast Produce Limited since August 2, the statement added.

The cleric holds an interest in Eagle Air, the company that manages the aircraft. Eagle Air had however said it had leased the aircraft to another company, Green Coast Produce Limited.

“Our attention has been drawn to press reports in respect of an aircraft (Bombardier Challenger 600, Registration No N808HG) in which our company holds a residual interest.

“We wish to confirm that the said aircraft has since the 2nd of August 2014 been leased to and is operated by Green Coast Produce Limited. The company and Mr. Ortisejafor’s church advised that all media enquiries in respect of the day-to-day operations of the aircraft be directed to the management of Green Coast Produce Limited.

In yet another statement, the management of Green Coast Produce Company Limited confirmed the aircraft had been leased to it, saying such transactions were normal in the aviation industry. The company explained that the aircraft was in turn hired from it by one John Ishyaku and therefore would not be liable for any alleged infractions either in Nigeria or South Africa after the hire.

Two Nigerians and an Israeli were caught with the money allegedly meant for buying and supplying weapons to the Nigeria intelligence services. The authorities therefore impounded the aircraft, while investigation on the matter commenced.

According to South African media, the three suspects arrived Johannesburg on September 5, in the said jet, from Abuja with the money loaded in three suitcases.

Chinese Teacher Beats 7-Year-Old Student Until He Fractured His Skull.

It’s a shame that in the world we live in today, you can’t even feel comfortable sending your child to school without fearing for their safety.

Police officials in China are currently searching for an art teacher they say abused four of his students so horribly that one ended up with a fractured skull.

The art teacher’s name is Lei Mingxing and he was employed at an elementary school in the Shaanxi province of China.

Lei decided to viciously assault four of his art students in his office. The art teacher beat one of the 7-year-old boys so heartlessly with a textbook he suffered a fractured skull.

The innocent children were rushed to a local hospital after another employee at the elementary school found the kids covered in blood and hiding in their classroom fearful for their lives.

As mentioned before, the boy whose skull was fractured is only 7-years-old.

China officials are urging people to share this story because the art teacher Lei Mingzing, is currently on the run. According to authorities, the art teacher fled the city on his motorcycle and is currently hiding in the woods.

“I walked past his office and heard crying,” said head teacher Wang Qin, according to the International Business Times. “As I went in I saw the pupils on the floor, very distressed and covered in blood. We’ve no idea what’s behind this. He has always been a very good teacher. We are a very small school, only 22 pupils, so this is totally shocking. He has been a good teacher for many years and has never shown any sign of violence before. We are very concerned for the children and will be talking to all of them to see what was behind this.”

China officials are urging people to share this story because the art teacher Lei Mingzing, is currently on the run. According to authorities, the art teacher fled the city on his motorcycle and is currently hiding in the woods.

“We have found tire tracks, footprints and empty wine bottles,” said police chief Deng Mingshan. “We have surrounded the woods. We have spoken to the pupils and they say they have no idea why he did it. He just called them into his office and began attacking them.”