Nigerian Train Crashes Into Truck

A Nigerian passenger train that took off from Kano and bound for Lagos crashed into a faulty truck late this afternoon (Nigerian time), officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have confirmed. The accident took place a few meters from the Kakau Train Station in Chikun local government area of Kaduna State.
Two sources said the truck involved in the accident was loaded with human waste, specifically excreta. The truck was reportedly stuck on the rail line as the Lagos-bound passengers train rammed into it.
An official at the North West Zonal Office of NEMA disclosed that the agency received a distress call after the accident. The agency’s emergency response team was then mobilized and sent to the scene of the accident to undertake rescue operations.
Eyewitnesses who spoke to SaharaReporters stated that the faulty truck belonged to Ibe Nigeria Limited. “The truck just broke down right at the rail line.
Then the moving train crashed into it, resulting in the derailment of the train,” one eyewitness said.
Neither NEMA nor eyewitnesses disclosed information about any casualties among the passengers. However, an eyewitness said four passengers sustained serious injuries. The injured were reportedly evacuated to Saint Gerald Catholic Hospital, Kakuri, Kaduna State for treatment. SaharaReporters was unable to obtain official confirmation from the hospital.
Our correspondent said NEMA officials had conducted an on-the-spot-assessment to determine the extent of the damages.

Police kill Bamigbetan’s kidnappers, arrest two

The Lagos State Police Command says it has arrested members of a kidnapping syndicate suspected to have kidnapped the Chairman, Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, Kehinde Bamigbetan.

According to the police, the suspects were arrested shortly after kidnapping an Indian, Vivex Changrani, in the early hours of Monday.

The Commissioner of Police for the command, Umar Manko, said the suspects were not based in Lagos but only operated in the state on weekends after which they would flee to Ghana.

He said apart from Bamigbetan, the suspects had been involved in a series of high-profile kidnapping including that of a Federal High Court judge in Lagos.

He said, “Based on painstaking investigation and tracking of Nigerian kidnappers who kidnapped Ejigbo LCDA Chairman, Kehinde Bamigbetan, a sitting Federal High Court Judge and other notable individuals in Lagos, a team of detectives, led by the Officer in Charge of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, traced the kidnappers to the Agbara area of Ogun State where the kidnappers have their camp.

“After 72 hours of laying ambush, the policemen stormed the house where the kidnappers were gathered. A gun duel ensued and seven kidnappers were killed. Two of the kdinappers, Ogbonna Emenike and Uchenna Nwanyu, were arrested alive with bullet wounds while four AK47 rifles, 28 AK47 magazines and over 1,000 rounds of AK47 live ammunition were recovered.

“A Honda CRV and a Nissan Pathfinder as well as charms were recovered from them. An Indian national, Vivex Changrani, who was kidnapped at Ikoyi two hours before the operation, was also rescued by the police.”

Manko said the suspects were able to evade arrest for so long because they were in Ghana and due to international law, Nigeria policemen had to collaborate with INTERPOL to track the suspects.

The police boss said the suspects operated in army uniforms which deceived members of the public.

“We discovered that because the suspects operated in army uniform, they easily got away. Sometimes, they could even alight from their vehicles in broad daylight and direct traffic in order to escape,” he said.

According to police detectives, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, the suspects lived flamboyant lifestyles in Ghana.

A police source, said the leader of the gang, Jonah Benjamin  Osinachi aka China, who was killed during a gun duel with the police, owned a big restaurant in Ghana and other investments which he funded with proceeds from his illegitimate business.

He said, “The suspects only struck during weekends after which they would go back to Ghana. For instance, after kidnapping Bamigbetan, they received $50,000 (N8m) as ransom. They went back to Ghana without any money.

“Rather, what they did was to give the money to a bureau de change operator who then helped them to transfer the money through an agent to Ghana.”

The suspects however said they were not members of the gang but only friends to the killed suspects.

Nwanyu said, “I am not a kidnapper, China employed me to manage his restaurant in Ghana and I have been doing that for two years now. I came with China, his wife and two kids on Sunday because they said they wanted to renew their passports at FESTAC.”

Another suspect, Emenike, said he was not part of the gang. He said he was only released from prison last Monday and was only at the wrong place at the wrong time.

The Indian victim, Changrani, however identified the suspects as his captors. He commended the police for rescuing him less than five hours after his abduction.

He said, “I have been living in Nigeria for seven years and I work for a plastic-manufacturing company. On Sunday night, around 12am, I was on Gerard Road, Ikoyi, when men in army uniform flagged down my vehicle. They jumped into my car and pushed me into the back seat.

“An hour later, they pushed me into their own vehicle, blindfolded me. After some hours, they took me into their house and locked me in a room and told me to sleep. Around 5am, I started hearing gunshots and when the police identified themselves, I screamed for help and they rescued me. The police did a fantastic job.”

>>> vanguard

DISCOVERY: Women really are more likely to orgаsm if they’re with an attractive man

Some women prefer a sensitive New Man to a rugged brute.  But according to research, they’re missing out between the sheets.

A study of couples’ sex lives has found that women have more orgasms with men they rated as more masculine and dominant. Unsurprisingly, those with good-looking partners also fared better.
A study into sexual relationships found that women had more orgasms, and at the best times for conception, with men they thought were handsome and dominant.
Women who found their partners most attractive were more likely to orgasm at the same time or just after men, which is the optimum time to get pregnant.
In the past, female orgasm has been thought of as biologically useless.
But researchers from Pennsylvania State University claim the findings support the theory that female orgasms have an evolutionary function.
Previous evidence appears to show that it may help retain sperm after sex and promote conception.
This research appears to show that female orgasm could be a way of selecting the best genes for procreation.
The report, ‘Men’s masculinity and attractiveness predict their female partners’ reported orgasm frequency and timing’, were published in Evolution and Human Behaviour.
The authors concluded: ‘Although our results require replication, they are consistent with the hypothesis that female orgasm is a copulatory mate choice mechanism, perhaps for selecting high-quality genes for offspring.’
The researchers interviewed 110 couples from a U.S. university and questioned them on when they experienced an orgasm and whether it was before, after or at the same time as their partner.
Women were asked to rate their own attractiveness out of 10 and how dominant or masculine their boyfriend or husband is. Men were asked to rate their own attractiveness, dominance and masculinity and their partner’s femininity.
The ratings were then compared to ratings on attractive judged by a separate group of people.
They were also rated on objective characteristics such as facial masculinity and symmetry.
Results showed that if the man is particularly attractive or masculine, the woman is much more likely to orgasm at the same time or just after her partner, and thus increase the chance of getting pregnant.
According to the researchers, a woman is more likely to become pregnant if she has an orgasm either one minute before or 45 minutes after a male has ejaculated.
David Puts, lead author, wrote: ‘We found that objective measures of the quality of women’s mates – men’s attractiveness and masculinity – significantly predicted the women’s orgasms.
‘Earlier-timed orgasms suggest more intense sexual arousal and indeed are associated with greater sexual pleasure.’

Security Man Breaks ATM, Steals N12m

A security man and employee of First Bank Nigeria Plc, Jibowu Branch, Seyi Jaiyeola, is standing trial at a magistrate’s court in Ebute Meta for allegedly breaking the company’s automated teller machine and stealing a sum of N12, 533,900.

The bank’s branch Service Manager, Mr. Kayode Aiyewunmi, who gave evidence in court, said Jaiyeola was on a N20, 000 monthly pay and was a member of the Odua People’s Congress.
He said the company had observed that one of the bank’s four ATMs was having a reconciliation problem and had employed the service of an expert to help unravel mysterious disappearances of money.
Aiyewunmi said, “We discovered that there was always a shortage of cash in the machine.
“Despite our reconciliation efforts, the ATM was still having problems and we engaged the service of an expert who submitted his report and said the machine did not have any reconciliation issue.
“He said somebody was breaking into the machine in the middle of the night to steal the cash.
“I reported the matter to my boss, who said I should conduct an investigation into  the matter. “When the last breakage happened, we went to play back the branch’ CCTV, and we now saw Jaiyeola in the middle of the night, opening the window at the back of my office. There’s a control panel which controls the security door, which he touched. So, the CCTV stopped.”
He said it was at that point the company concluded he was the brain behind the theft.
He said after the matter was reported at the Onipanu Police station, and the accused was arrested, he led them to his house, where he allegedly confessed to the crime.
Aiyewunmi said, “When we got to his house for a search, we recovered N243,945 cash. The police then asked him what else he did with the money. He said he bought a car, which was parked at the house there, a Toyota Corolla. Then we recovered a new generator. He also took the police to the building he was constructing which was near completion.” He said after recovering the item, First Bank transferred the matter to the State Criminal Investigation Department, Yaba.
Jaiyeola was arraigned on a five counts of fraud and stealing and was subsequently granted bail in the sum of N1m with two sureties in like sum.
The prosecution counsel, Mr. Ishola Samuel, asked for an adjournment to help source some  legal citations.
The magistrate, Mrs. M.O Tanimola, adjourned the matter till July 15.

Malicious websites maped out by Google

SAN FRANCISCO – Google expanded its Transparency Report on Tuesday to include maps of spots around the world where hackers are laying traps or baiting Internet users.
“Two of the biggest threats online are malicious software that can take control of your computer, and phishing scams that try to trick you into sharing passwords or other private information,” Google engineer Lucas Ballard said in a blog post.
“So today we’re launching a new section on our Transparency Report that will shed more light on the sources of malware and phishing attacks.”
Information for the new section comes from a Safe Browsing program Google launched in 2006 to warn Internet travelers when they were heading for trouble such as bogus bank websites or pages booby-trapped with computer viruses.
“We’re currently flagging up to 10,000 sites a day, and because we share this technology with other browsers there are about one billion users we can help keep safe,” Ballard said.
The new section added at google.com/transparencyreport included a map that showed that “malware” hotspots include India and Central Europe.
Google’s Transparency Report also provides information about government requests around the world for information from the California-based Internet giant and demands for removal of content from online properties.
Last week, Google said that it asked a special US court handling national security investigations for permission to publish more open with the public about numbers of requests.
The court filing in Washington came amid a firestorm of protests over revelations that the National Security Agency had accessed vast amounts of data in a surveillance program under the supervision of the secret court.
>>>Vanguard

State of Emergency: CDS Vows to Wipe Out Terrorists in Affected States

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Ola Sa'ad Ibrahim has vowed that the troops of the Joint Task Force (JTF) deployed to enforce state of emergency in some states of the north would not relent in its offensive until the remnants of Boko Haram insurgents are routed out with peace and stability restored.

Ibrahim stated this through the Nine-Man Defence Headquarters Assessment Team, which returned Tuesday from Yobe and Borno States to update him on the situation in the operational area of the Special Forces operating in the North East.

More to follow...

West Brom: No plans to sell Odemwingie

Osaze

West Brom chairman Jeremy Pearce has insisted that the club will not be forced into a cheap sale of Peter Odemwingie.
The striker is widely expected to leave the club following a season of unrest, but Pearce is adamant the Premier League club will not part company with him unless their criteria are met.
Odemwingie started just 13 Premier League games last season compared to 25 the year before and also halved his goal tally in the English top flight from 2011/12 to five.
The wantaway forward caused a great deal of controversy in the January transfer window when he effectively tried to initiate his own move to QPR, only for it to fall through.
“We have a player who is under contract until the end of the season,” Pearce told the Birmingham Mail.
“Unless something comes in to change our way of thinking he will be back in pre-season and we will deal with that.
“We took a view at the end of January – not only for the reasons of Peter Odemwingie or Queens Park Rangers, also whichever agents were involved who acted disgracefully, but for the long term of this football club that we have to behave a certain way.
“If we don’t do that they will all be knocking on the door. That said, unless we get an offer we’re happy with we won’t sell him.”

Erico applauds Eagles performance

FORMER Green Eagles goalkeeper, Joe Erico has hailed the Super Eagles performance at the ongoing Brazil 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup describing it as a good step to greater things to come.
The former NEPA coach, Erico said the Confederations Cup has given the team handlers the opportunity to really see how far the Eagles can go when they qualify for the World Cup proper billed for Brazil next year. He lamented that the team lacks sharp finishers hence they crashed out of the tournament with only three points after beating the whipping boys of the group, Tahiti.
“The team’s performance at the tournament was quite good , it’s very good for us because it has given us the opportunity to really see how far we can go when we qualify for the World Cup. Luckily, we have the last World Cup qualifier against Malawi here  and the experience from playing against the world’s best  at the Confederations Cup will be of  immense help to us.
Our strikers are lacking in speed off and on the ball. Today’s football requires quickness, a player must be fast and technically and tactically sound to cope. We saw how swiftly  Fernando Torres scored against us. Before our defender could raise his foot, the striker had already nodded the ball into the net. Our attackers require to be fast and sharp”, he said.
The former Eagles goalkeeper trainer, said he is a strong believer in youth development programme and he therefore, advised for the development of the youth by the nation’s football authorities.
He however commended the Super eagles Coach Stephen Keshi saying, “technically, Keshi has done well by bringing the team up-to the level they are now from nowhere.
Nobody gave them the chance against Uruguay  and Spain. So the good thing about this tournament is that they should see it as a pre-World Cup tournament which is going to give them room to improve ahead of the remaining World Cup qualifier”

FRSC introduces e-ticketing for traffic offence

Abuja – The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in partnership with the United Bank for Africa (UBA), on Tuesday, inaugurated e-ticketing to facilitate easy booking of motorists for road traffic offences.
Speaking at the inauguration, Mr Osita Chidoka, the Corps Marshal of the FRSC, said the bank had donated the first set of 60 hand-held devices for the e-ticketing.
According to him, 10 other devices have been donated by another bank for the programme.
Chidoka said the e-ticketing would initially take off as a pilot scheme in Lagos, Rivers and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
He said that with the introduction of the system, the FRSC would gradually move away from the conventional method of booking traffic offenders, which he described as obsolete and time-consuming.
The corps marshal said the new system would enable the FRSC to track habitual offenders, improve data management and reduce time spent in booking offenders.
“It will also enhance the capacity of the FRSC to confront road traffic offenders,’’ he added.
He said the commission was in partnership with UBA in sensitising motorists to the dangers of receiving or making phone calls and sending messages while driving.
Mr Kennedy Uzoka, the Deputy Managing Director of UBA, said that the bank was ready to work with the FRSC to save lives.
“We have been looking for partners to save lives and we found the FRSC; we chose the FRSC because of its impact at the national level.
“We can use technology to change the way people behave but texting while driving is very dangerous,” he said.
In an interview with newsmen, Prof. Robert Boroffice, the Chairman, Senate Committee on Science and Technology, urged motorists to desist from using the phone while driving as the habit was a major cause of road accidents.
“If you take the statistics of lives and property lost on the road you will find out that the number is even more than the number of lives lost through AIDs and other pandemic diseases,’’ he said.
Boroffice commended the FRSC for introducing the e-ticketing, saying it is in line with the cashless policy of the present administration.
“The system will also reduce fraud, so the issue of somebody shortchanging the Federal Government or the FRSC does not arise. It is a good initiative.’’ (NAN)
>>>vanguard

Uduaghan sends football champions abroad

Ogedegbe Primary School in Warri could soon be more than a Primary school. Kids from the school won this year’s Channels Kids Soccer Competition in Lagos.
And for that Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan , in line with his sports development programme, plansd to transform the school into a special football nursery that will also take their school work seriously.
Interestingly, Dr. Uduaghan was a special guest in the final of the competition with Babatunde Fashola, the Governor of Lagos State.

He watched the team from his state lift the trophy and he invited them to the Governor’s Cup final in Warri, May 29.
And yesterday, he visited the school during the inspection of ongoing projects in Delta State. He expressed delight that the school, which produced the likes of Wilson Oruma, has been some kind of a breeding ground for football and said the following to them:
‘’I want to thank you for making Warri proud when you won the Channels Cup which was live on television. I decided to visit you during break time in order not to disrupt your school programme. You played good football during the competition.
I followed you throughout and watched the final. You made us proud. I want to assure the kids that the government will encourage any one who wants to take to football as a career. We will expand your football field to make it a standard one, help in training the kids and boost the football tradition here.
We will send the Channels Kids to a summer school abroad where they could train and also do summer school work. It is part of the training and exposure that I hope will help in developing the kids.’’
Uduaghan promised to pay stipends to the parents of the players to assist in providing them good nutrition for good growth.
Headmistress of the school, Philomena Onoherhe thanked the Governor for his leadership qualities and said that they have been inspired to do more in the area of sports and academics.

CAF Appoints Keita For Eagles/Elephants Match

The Confederation of African Football, CAF, has appointed Malian official, Mahamadou Keita as centre referee for the 2014 African Nations Championship qualifying match between Nigeria and Ivory Coast, billed for Saturday next week in Kaduna.

Keita, 30, became an international referee in 2009.
He will be assisted by compatriots Moriba Diakite, 33 (Assistant Referee 1), Nouhoum Bamba, 35 (Assistant Referee 2) and Ousmane Sidibe, 39 (Reserve Referee).
The Match Commissioner is Idrissa Sarr, a renowned former FIFA-graded referee from Mauritania.
For the return leg in Abidjan on July 27, CAF has appointed officials from Morocco to take charge. Noureddine el Jaafari, a 35-year old who became an international referee only this year, will be at the centre, to be assisted by compatriots Bouazza Rouani, 39 (Assistant Referee 1), Youssef Mabrouk, 38 (Assistant Referee 2) and Khalid Ennouni, 40 (Reserve Referee).The Match Commissioner will be Kossi Adjodo from Togo.

2014 CHAN: Keshi calls up Agbim, 23 others for Ivory Coast Tie

Keshi

Super Eagles’ Head Coach, Stephen Keshi has swiftly turned his attention to the 2014 African Nations Championship qualifying match against Ivory Coast, by calling up 24 home boys for the game billed for next weekend.
Even as the African champions were ruing several missed chances in the 3-0 defeat to World and European champions, Spain at the FIFA Confederations Cup tournament in Brazil, Keshi pencilled down goalkeeper Chigozie Agbim, defenders: Azubuike Egwuekwe, Godfrey Oboabona, Solomon Kwambe and Benjamin Francis, midfielders: Emeka Eze and Sunday Mba and forward: Muhammad Gambo from the squad that were with him in Brazil, he added 14 more from Nigeria’s top flight and two from the lower division.
Others in the squad are goalkeeper Daniel Akpeyi, defender Kunle Odunlami and striker Obinna Nwachukwu and Gomo Onduku who were part of the team’s training camp in Germany ahead of the international friendly with Mexico in Texas, USA.
Defender Chibuzor Okonkwo, no stranger to the senior team camp, is joined by familiar faces Umar Zango and Ezekiel Bassey, Ayo Saka and Anthony Okputu.
Nigeria Professional Football League top scorer, Dele Olorundare of Sunshine Stars is joined by former junior international midfielder, Olufemi Oladapo.
New faces are: Mohammed Ajia of Bayelsa United, Enyimba FC’s Ifeanyi Edeh, Pius Samson of Ranch Bees, Festus Ajah of Union Bank FC and Warri Wolves’ Etebo Oghene.
The players are expected to report at the Bolton White Apartments, Abuja on Sunday, 30 June, 2013.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, has announced that the match will be played at the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna on Saturday, 6th July.
“We are happy for the favourable response from the Kaduna State Government, and we have also approached the National Sports Commission for permission to use the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna for the encounter.
“The grass is excellent and the entire facility is so well-maintained. The Super Eagles will find the place comfortable,” Barrister Musa Amadu, NFF General Secretary who was in Kaduna on Monday, said.
LIST OF INVITED PLAYERS:
Goalkeepers: Chigozie Agbim (Warri Wolves); Daniel Akpeyi (Heartland FC).
Defenders: Azubuike Egwuekwe (Warri Wolves); Godfrey Oboabona (Sunshine Stars); Benjamin Francis (Heartland FC); Kunle Odunlami (Sunshine Stars); Ezekiel Bassey (Lobi Stars); Umar Zango (Kano Pillars); Solomon Kwambe (Sunshine Stars); Chibuzor Okonkwo (Enugu Rangers)
Midfielders: Sunday Mba (Enugu Rangers); Ayo Saka (Enyimba FC); Olufemi Oladapo (3SC); Emeka Eze (Enugu Rangers); Mohammed Ajia (Bayelsa United)
Forwards: Muhammad Gambo (Kano Pillars); Obinna Nwachukwu (Heartland FC); Gomo Onduku (Bayelsa United); Ifeanyi Edeh (Enyimba FC); Anthony Okputu (Lobi Stars); Pius Samson (Ranch Bees); Festus Ajah (Union Bank); Etebo Oghene (Warri Wolves); Dele Olorundare (Sunshine Stars)