The Late 5: Police, DSS lay siege to Melaye’s residence, Prince George welcomes baby boy, and other top stories

Melaye

These are the top five Nigerian stories that drove conversation today.

Senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye was arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport in Abuja.

Melaye had tweeted that he has been arrested by the police in the morning.

Senator Shehu Sani later tweeted that he has been released.


Justice Sherifat Solebo of an Ikeja Special Offences Court on Monday ordered Justice Mohammed Yunusa, a suspended Judge of the Federal High Court, Lagos, to face trial for alleged corruption.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Yunusa’s defence counsel, Chief Robert Clarke (SAN), had on March 9, in a preliminary objection, said the embattled judge had been “absolved of the corruption charges” by the National Judicial Council (NJC).

Citing the case of Federal Republic of Nigeria Vs Nganjiwa, Clarke had said that for Yunusa’s dismissal to be valid, President Muhammadu Buhari, had to give a recommendation for his suspension.


A High Court sitting in Port Harcourt on Monday ordered the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed; and the Federal Government to stop further mention of the name of Prince Uche Secondus, National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, as one of the looters in the country pending the determination of a matter brought before it bordering on defamation of character.

Secondus had approached the State High Court presided over by the State Chief Judge, Justice I.A. Iyayi-Lamikanra, in Suit Number PHC/1013/2018, seeking the sum of N1.5bn as damages over the publishing of his name in the media as one of those allegedly involved in the looting of the nation’s treasury.

Secondus was reported to have received the sum of N200m from the office of the then National Security Adviser on February 19, 2015.


Dino Melaye, lawmaker representing Kogi west senatorial district, is currently stranded as policemen and operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have laid siege to his residence in the Maitama area of Abuja .

Melaye had earlier tweeted about the incident, saying over 30 armed security personnel have surrounded his residence.

He was earlier detained at the Abuja airport and blocked from travelling out of the country.


Lai Mohammed, minister of information, has spoken on why he and some of his colleagues were absent at the US-Nigeria Investment Summit in Washington, DC, on April 19, 2018.

Audu Ogbeh (agriculture), Ogbonnaya Onu (science and technology), Babatunde Fashola (power), Ibe Kachikwu (state for petroleum resources), Kemi Adeosun (finance) and Kayode Fayemi (solid minerals) were expected to attend the event.

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, emir of Kano, had expressed displeasure over the absence of government officials at the meeting, saying Nigeria might lose investors because of “tardiness and lackadaisical attitude”.

But in a statement on Monday, Mohammed said most of the ministers who were slated to attend the event were not invited and were not in Washington, DC, at the time.

“The insinuation that some ministers collected estacodes without attending the forum is baseless,” he said.

“The ministers of agriculture; power works and housing and budget and national planning did not get any invitation from the organisers, even though they were listed among those who were expected to attend,” the statement read.


And now, stories from around the world…

There were scenes of jubilation on Monday in the Armenian capital Yerevan after protests forced the resignation of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan.

Opposition supporters accused Mr Sargsyan, who was made prime minister last week after serving 10 years as president, of clinging to power.

“The street movement is against my tenure. I am fulfilling your demand,” Mr Sargsyan said in a statement.

Former prime minister Karen Karapetyan has taken over as acting PM.


Prince George and Princess Charlotte have arrived at hospital to meet their new baby brother.

The new prince, who was born at St Mary’s Hospital, London, at 11:01 BST, weighing 8lb 7oz, is fifth in line to the throne.

Before entering through the doors of the Lindo Wing, Charlotte turned to wave to the crowds.

Kensington Palace said the Duchess of Cambridge and her son, who is yet to be named, are “both doing well”.

Members of both families had been informed and were “delighted with the news”.


Fox News host Sean Hannity allegedly received help from the US Department for Housing and Urban Development to carry out multimillion dollar real estate deals, according to a report by The Guardian.

The Guardian reported Sunday that Hannity is linked to a web of shell companies that spent at least $90 million buying more than 870 homes across seven states over the past 10 years. The newspaper said it reviewed thousands of pages of public records to piece together Hannity’s alleged property portfolio.

The Fox News host bought two apartment complexes in Georgia in 2014 for $22.7 million, according to The Guardian.

It reported that HUD helped him get mortgages worth $17.9 million to fund the purchases by insuring the loans under a National Housing Act program.


Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the cell alleged to have carried out the November 2015 Paris terror attacks, has been jailed for 20 years over a shootout with Belgian police days before he was arrested.

A Belgian court found Abdeslam guilty of attempted murder in a “terrorist context”, a spokesman for the Brussels prosecutor confirmed.

Abdeslam was involved in a confrontation with police in the Forest suburb of Brussels in March 2016, four months after the attacks on a Paris concert hall and restaurants left 130 people dead.

His co-defendant Sofien Ayari also received a 20-year sentence.


More than a day after a semi-naked gunman shot up a Waffle House and killed four people, the suspect is still on the loose.

Nashville public schools are following “lock-out” procedures while the killer is at large. Police say residents should keep their doors locked as authorities scour the woods and other places Travis Reinking, 29, may be hiding.

“I think right now, you’re going to be looking in the general wooded area around Antioch, where he could have gotten so far,” CNN law enforcement contributor Steve Moore said.

“If you keep in mind that he’s still got this main currency — which is going to be a firearm — he can get pretty much whatever he wants.”

Leave a reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

cool good eh love2 cute confused notgood numb disgusting fail