Troops stationed in Abako town, Katsina-Ala Local Government Area, in Benue State have clashed with secondary school students over a girl.

The incidents resulted in the burning of an army checkpoint in Abako town by the irate secondary school students, where soldiers also allegedly opened fire on the students, and some sustained injuries.

The Nation gathered from a teacher in the school, Peter Anande, that trouble started when a soldier who was a boyfriend to a female student, Veronica, bought earrings for her.

Abako town is in Katsina Ala Local Government Area, Sankera geo-political bloc, was where the late gang leader Terwase Akwaza, popularly called Gana, held sway for long.

Peter Anande told The Nation on the phone that a soldier bought earrings for his girlfriend, and she wore them to school, and was seized by the head girl of the school because such earrings were not allowed to be used in the school.

The girl, Vero, reported the seizure to the soldiers who were at the checkpoint.

Anande said “While it was break time, the head girl proceeded to the main market to get breakfast, and at the checkpoint, she was harassed and assaulted by the soldiers for seizing the earring.

“A teacher who heard the incident rushed to the army checkpoint, he was also harassed and battered,” said Anande.

The news of harassment filtered into the school compound and the students mobilized and attacked soldiers at the checkpoint.

“The soldiers at the checkpoint fired at the students but they overpowered them and set the checkpoint ablaze and opened up the road, using the barricaded tyres and wood to make bone fire.”

There was tension in Katsina-Ala as residents who have been calling on soldiers to leave the area, expressed dismay on why troops who came for serious security situations would be romancing around with secondary school students.

They called for the withdrawal of the soldiers in Abako town.

Police Area Command in the area confirmed the situation and said normalcy had returned to the area.

At press time, the school said they would get a lawyer to petition the Chief Of Army Staff in Abuja.

When an Abuja businessman, Wilson Egun, employed a young man he met during a chance encounter last October as his personal driver, he never knew his act of kindness would become his undoing.

Egun met the suspect, Sunday Bidemi in the Mararaba area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) when he needed help with locating his destination.

Bidemi came in handy as he offered to guide Egun to the place he was looking for. The young man exhibited a mastery of the terrain that left an impression on the businessman.

As the two men discussed during the ride to Egun’s destination, he mentioned that he was indeed searching for a good driver who knows the city very well; an opportunity Bidemi seized to market himself as an experienced driver in need of employment.

Impressed by Bidemi’s willingness to help and his confidence in his driving skills, Egun decided to offer him the job without a formal interview or background checks. Both men simply had a handshake and gentleman’s agreement to seal their relationship as employer and employee.

Bidemi performed his duties excellently in the first few weeks after he was employed as he drove his principal whenever he was needed to do so. He played the good boy card and waited for Egun to let his guards down before striking; an opportunity he got barely about a mount in the job.

Having won his boss’ trust, Bidemi was in November last year asked to take Mrs. Monica Egun, his employer’s mother, to a hospital in Cite C Estate, near Airport Junction, Gwarimpa, for her doctor’s appointment since the businessman was indisposed on that day.

But Bidemi was alleged to have dropped the woman at the hospital and immediately fled with the grey Toyota Corolla 2016 model.

When Mr. Egun realised what had happened, he immediately reported the incident to the Maitama Police Division and the Anti-Car Theft Unit in Abuja.

The betrayal left Egun in disbelief. “I trusted him. He seemed genuine, and I never imagined he would steal from me,” he lamented.

Weeks passed, but there was no sign of Bidemi or the stolen vehicle. As hope was beginning to fade, officers of the FCT Police Command recorded a breakthrough.

On December 15, nearly a month after he stole the vehicle, Bidemi was arrested at a car wash in Masaka, Nasarawa State, where he was washing the vehicle.

It turned out the suspect was cruising with the car he stole from his benevolent employer. He was allegedly using the vehicle to lure women in Abuja, whom he described as “cheap to attract.”

According to Bidemi, who investigators discovered defrauded and stole from two other women at different times, all that was needed to attract women in the FCT was for a man to dress nicely inside a good car with a working air conditioner.

Before his arrest, Bidemi had taken the stolen Toyota Corolla on a trip to Jos, Plateau State, from where he was returning to Abuja. Along the way, he picked up a young woman, Didel Clara John, who had no idea she was about to become his next victim.

During their journey together, Bidemi managed to gain her trust. He asked her to fuel the car with N60,000, promising to reimburse her. In addition, he borrowed another N20,000, claiming his bank app was faulty and he would refund her later.

Didel, feeling assured by his neat appearance in the navy blue tracksuit he had on, thought he was a responsible individual. She had no reason to doubt his story, so she handed over the money. The two then travelled together to Saminaka and Kachia in Kaduna State, spending the night in a hotel. But Bidemi vanished at dawn, leaving Didel stranded and fleeing with her money.

In the course of investigation, detectives found that Bidemi stole the tracksuits he wore the day he defrauded Didel from a Nigerian Navy (NN) personnel, Mrs. Yina Mngusuur Stella, who saw him stranded and offered him a ride.

Near Abacha Barracks Bridge, where she had taken him for a programme, Bidemi stole her tracksuit, ATM card, National Identification Number (NIN) card, and Navy slip tag.

As investigators dug deeper, they discovered Bidemi’s pattern of manipulation. He used his well-maintained appearance, often dressing in a clean, confident manner, to gain the trust of unsuspecting victims. He used stolen items to appear credible, gaining people’s trust before robbing them.

Confirming his arrest, the FCT Police Command said Bidemi would face charges for all his crimes.

Police Commissioner (CP) Olatunji Disu confirmed that the recovered vehicle had been returned to Egun.

“This case serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of hiring employees without proper vetting. Mr. Egun’s willingness to help someone he met by chance ultimately led to financial loss, emotional distress, and weeks of police involvement,” he noted.

Disu advised people to ensure they conduct background checks to verify the identity of anyone they intend to hire as domestic help or driver.

He said employers should request valid identification like a driver’s licence or national identity card or international passport, adding that they should request for references.

“Take time to assess their behaviour before giving them access to valuables. Install vehicle tracking devices because in cases of vehicle theft, tracking devices can help locate the stolen car quickly,” he said.

Suspected pirates hijacked a passenger boat carrying 20 travellers along the Bonny-Okrika waterways in Rivers State on Thursday.

This came as the Bonny Local Government Council said it had rescued nine of the passengers, while a frantic search is on to rescue the others.

The Bonny LG Chairman, Anengi Claude-Wilcox, said the rescue was in collaboration with security agencies.

Claude-Wilcox, in a statement by his media aide, Boma Waribor, on Friday, said the driver of the passenger boat went contrary to the rules to pass through kilometre 10, which is a prohibited channel for commercial boat drivers.

The statement reads, “Security briefing at the disposal of the Executive Chairman of Bonny Local Government Area, Anengi Barasua Claude-Wilcox, indicates that a passenger boat comprising 20 persons enroute Bonny was intercepted this afternoon by Sea Pirates around the precincts of Isaka in Okrika Local Government Area.

“However, it should be noted that nine persons have been found and returned to Port Harcourt through the timely intervention of Government Security operatives who are currently up and about and have intensified efforts to rescue the remaining 12 passengers.

“It should be noted that preliminary findings reveal that the Boat Driver disobeyed the rules and passed through Kilometer 10, a prohibited channel for commercial Boat Drivers.

“The relatives of the victims and the public are urged to be calm as the Bonny Local Government Council is seriously collaborating with neighbouring LGAs and the security agencies to arrest the situation.

Meanwhile, the Maritime Union Workers of Nigeria, Rivers State chapter, has expressed worry over the continued pirate attacks in the State.

The Chairman of the MUWN, Rivers Commercial District, Isreal Wariboko, while reacting decried the incessant attacks despite the efforts of the state government to stop the trends.

He noted that the pirates came out with different strategies in each operation, nothing that the miscreants reside in the mangrove.

According to him, “Of course you know these boys. When they know that there is security in this area, they go to another area to operate. They are criminals.

“The truth of the matter is that they are in that they are somehow in the mangrove, and they monitor the activities of security agencies and the movement of every individual. So they come out when they see that the place is a little bit free.”

“Sometimes security can be at the front, and they operate behind. Sometimes when they know that they are there, they go ahead of the security. That is the way they operate. As long as they are in the mangrove, we will continue to see this type of attack once in a while,” Wariboko said.

He, therefore, called for more security presence along the waterways to curb the incessant attacks, even as he said the latest attacks have been reported to the police.

He further said, “You will recall that after our protest and the donation of gunboats by the Governor, we have not complained about pirate attacks along our sea routes.

“Just recently they have devices another means. I will go out there and find out what really happened to know whether the boat followed the real route or diverted to another route.

“The marine police are aware of the matter, and I know that they are handling it. As a union, too, we have sent a search party twice today.”