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Alleged Cyber-Bullying: Court Threatens To Hold Sowore’s Lawyer For Contempt
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Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court Abuja, has threatened to commit the lead defence lawyer to a politician and online publisher Omoyele Sowore, for contempt over rudeness in court.
For raising his voice in court, the judge ordered Sowore’s lawyer, Marshall Abubakar, to “come out and kneel down” in open court.
Other lawyers, however, quickly prevailed upon the judge to forgive their colleague.
Sowore is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) for allegedly making false claims against the person of President Bola Tinubu by referring to him as “a criminal” in a post he made on his “X” and Facebook accounts.
The activist’s lawyer drew the ire of the judge when he raised his voice while making submissions in court, insisting that the date chosen by the court for the defence to open its case was not convenient for him.
Trouble started when, shortly after Abubakar concluded cross examination of the only prosecution witness.
The prosecuting lawyer announced the closure of the case and applied that the defence be called upon to open its case.
When asked by the judge when he planned to open his defence, Abubakar said the defendant would make a no-case submission and suggested that the court should adjourn till a date in July.
The prosecuting lawyer, Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN), objected and argued that it was part of the defence’s tactics intended to further delay proceedings.
He suggested that the case be given an accelerated hearing and be heard on a daily basis.
In his intervention, the judge regretted that, while the prosecution was swift in conducting its case, the defence spent four days cross-examining the prosecution’s only witness.
The judge said it was not feasible to hear the case on a daily basis, but directed parties to return on April 13 for the adoption of their final written addresses in respect of the no-case submission.
Whilst Sowore was addressing the judge from the witness box on how the proposed date might affect his party’s upcoming primaries, his lawyer also simultaneously began addressing the judge, narrating how his client was poised to wrest power from President Bola Tinubu.
“This court belongs to all of us. This court is not for some people alone. It belongs to all of us,” said Abubakar.
Attempts by the judge to make the lawyer lower his voice were unsuccessful.
At that point, Justice Umar bellowed, “If you shout in this court again, I will commit you for contempt. In fact, come here! Come and kneel down here!” pointing to a spot in front of the courtroom.
On realising the unsavoury turn of events, other lawyers, led by the only SAN in the courtroom, Akinlolu Kehinde, jumped to their feet and began begging the judge to forgive the aberrant lawyer.
While the lawyers were still upstanding begging, the judge pronounced that the case had been adjourned till April 13 for adoption, and rose for the day.
Earlier, when the case was called in the morning, Kehinde told the court that Sowore had a recording device with him in the dock.
He urged the court to direct that the device be taken from the defendant.
But Sowore denied being in possession of any recording device, adding that he only had with him his eye glasses, power bank, and phone.
Justice Umar recalled that the court had earlier made an order that the defendant should not bring any gadget with him while in the dock.
The judge then asked him to submit the items to his lawyers, which he handed to a court official, who transferred them to Sowore’s lawyer.
When asked to proceed with the case, Abubakar claimed to have only learnt about Monday’s sitting a few moments before the court’s session began.
He said he was not in court with the case file because he was in another court for a separate case. He then applied for a stand-down until 12:30 pm to enable him to retrieve the file from his office.
Although Kehinde objected, arguing that it was a ploy by the defence to further delay proceedings, the judge granted the stand down.
When proceedings resumed at about 1 p.m., Abubakar cross-examined the sole prosecution witness, Cyril Nosike (a DSS operative), for about two hours.
He also tendered copies of newspaper publications, some of which he later gave to the witness to read.
News
Unleashing unusual loyalty: Edo APC chairman, Tenebe, reportedly threatens to ‘kpai’ critics over FB post on Gov Okpebholo
The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State, Jarrett Tenebe, has displayed an unusual loyalty by threatening to kill a critic following a social media report alleging that Governor Monday Okpebholo travelled to Abuja to protest his exclusion from the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
The controversy started with a Facebook post by Samuel Iyobosa, who claimed that Okpebholo had travelled to Abuja to protest his alleged exclusion from the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
Tenebe reacted to Iyobosa’s post by threatening him, stating, “Bastard stop lying and if you continue you die.”
The threat subsequently triggered further exchanges between Tenebe and other social media users who commented on the development.
One of the users, Baron Mike, wrote, “Nehizena Ogunrobo see as party chairman dey react. Brainless man.”
In response, Tenebe allegedly wrote, “Baron Mike talk nonsense you die because you are talking rubbish.”
Tenebe also directed another comment at Baron Mike, stating, “Baron Mike Baron Mike come to Nigeria and talk.”
News
CCTV Captures Armed Robbery Suspects at Benin City Hair Shop, Luxury Wigs Worth Millions Stolen
CCTV has captured the moment a hair vendor in Benin City, Edo State, was allegedly robbed by armed individuals who made away with luxury wigs reportedly worth millions of naira.
The incident occurred on Saturday at a hair shop located on Tony Anenih Road, off Ebenezer School Road, Ihama, GRA, Benin City.
According to the shop owner, who operates the Instagram account @official.pricelessstrands, the suspects had visited the shop a day earlier pretending to make enquiries about getting a customer’s hair done.
She said they returned a few hours later and carried out the robbery after another man, allegedly armed with a gun, arrived at the premises.
Sharing clearer CCTV footage of the incident on Instagram, the vendor alleged that the suspects initially sat in the waiting area, pretending they were waiting for a third person to make payment for a braiding session.
She wrote that as soon as the man arrived with a gun, the group began the operation.
According to her account, the robbers forced the two staff members on duty into an inner office where the shop’s more expensive luxury hair products were stored. They then packed several bags containing wigs and other hair products before locking the employees inside the office and fleeing the scene.
The business owner said one of the suspects was captured clearly on the CCTV footage, while another suspect, described as a woman wearing a black top with a noticeable facial scar, had also visited the shop the previous day under the guise of making enquiries.
She appealed to members of the public to help identify the suspects by sharing the CCTV footage widely on social media.
«”This is the face of one of the armed robbers who just robbed my office. Himself and the scar-faced lady on black top came yesterday in the guise of making enquiries about making her hair, only for them to return today to rob the office and loot hairs worth millions in several bags,” she said.»
The hair vendor called on security agencies and residents of Benin City to assist in identifying and apprehending those responsible for the robbery.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no official statement from the Edo State Police Command regarding the incident or whether any arrests had been made.
The CCTV footage has since been circulated online as the shop owner seeks public assistance in bringing the suspects to justice.
News
Tears flow in Borgu as terrorists unleash deadly attack , k!ill 40, kidn*ap over 100 in Niger State after Friday prayers
Tears flow as gunmen in military-styled uniforms invaded four villages in Niger State’s remote Borgu Local Government Area moments after Friday prayers, leaving more than 40 people dead and over 100 abducted in what residents are calling the deadliest attack in the area this year.
The rampage tore through Dekara, Gidan Zana, Sabon Gida, and Masaka — communities tucked along the border with Kebbi, Kwara, and the Republic of Benin.
Witnesses told the BBC the attackers rode into Dekara right after worshippers left the mosque.
“They gathered people in the open, picked out men, women and children, and marched them into the forest,” a resident said. From there, the gunmen fanned out to neighbouring villages, shooting, burning, and abducting.
Police spokesman Wasiu Abiodun confirmed the toll: “More than 40 people were killed. Over 100 were abducted. We suspect these are bandits, but the pattern is getting worse.”
Local lawmaker Jafar Muhammad Shetiman Borgu also confirmed the attacks, warning that the scale and audacity point to something darker.
—Fear Of Recruitment, Jihadist Link—
Officials say Borgu has become a corridor for armed groups — bandit gangs, jihadists, and cross-border fighters — who exploit vast forests and weak security presence.
Shetiman raised a chilling alarm: “There are fears that some of these gunmen are now trying to recruit young people in the communities they attack.”
In recent months, residents say jihadist fighters have entered villages and imposed religious restrictions. The area’s proximity to Benin makes it a safe haven for groups fleeing military pressure in the North West.
—A Cycle Of Horror—
This is not Borgu’s first tragedy.
Earlier this month, 145 people were rescued from kidnappers in Konkoso, Kasuwan-Daji, Tungan-Makeri and Shafachi. Authorities said they were part of 308 people rescued nationwide, including over 160 from neighbouring Kwara.
Last week alone, more than 20 people*l were killed in Borgu.
And in November 2025, gunmen abducted over 200 pupils from a school in Papiri. They were freed about a month later after negotiations.
Despite repeated military and police operations, large swaths of Niger State remain inaccessible. Armed groups operate from forested hideouts, striking isolated communities and vanishing before reinforcements arrive.
—“The Forests Have Become Their Barracks”—
The latest massacre underscores the collapsing security architecture in North Central Nigeria.
From kidnapping for ransom, to looting, to alleged ideological recruitment, the Borgu attacks show how criminal gangs and jihadist elements are merging into one deadly force.
Governor Umar Bago has yet to make a public statement on the latest killings. Residents say they are living in fear, with many now fleeing to bigger towns.
“The forests have become their barracks. Our villages have become their hunting ground,” a community leader in Dekara said.
As burial preparations begin and families wait for news of the abducted, one question echoes across Borgu: Who will stop the next attack?
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