The Anambra State Police Command has announced a significant security breakthrough after dismantling a suspected supply network supporting criminal groups linked to secessionist activities in the state.

In a statement on December 12, 2025, Police Public Relations Officer SP Ikenga Tochukwu said a joint security operation, involving the Rapid Response Squad, Awkuzu, and Agunechemba units, acted on credible intelligence in the early hours of December 11.

The operation led to the arrest of two suspects identified as Mmadubuchi Ike (28) and Chinonso Izunobi (34).

The suspects were intercepted while allegedly transporting supplies to a criminal camp around Orsumoghu and Aguluezechukwu.

Officers recovered one Type 06 rifle with ten rounds of live ammunition, two pump-action guns, and twenty live cartridges.

“Information obtained during interrogation links the suspects to serious crimes, including the murder of a youth leader known as ‘Biggy’ in Ukpor, as well as multiple kidnapping cases across the state,” SP Ikenga said.

The Police Commissioner, CP Ikioye Orutugu, assured residents that investigations are ongoing to apprehend other members of the syndicate who remain at large.

“The Command remains fully committed to safeguarding communities across Anambra State, particularly during the festive season,” SP Ikenga added.

Authorities have urged residents to stay vigilant and support security agencies by providing timely information to enhance ongoing operations.

Three farmers, Rashidi Kareem (60), Dele Julius (41) and Musa Rasaki (65) were on Thursday arraigned before an Iyaganku Magistrates’ Court in Ibadan, Oyo State, for allegedly killing 33 cows belonging to herders in Kunbi village, Akinyele Local Government Area.

According to the police prosecutor, Akeem Akinloye, the defendants were accused of willfully and unlawfully killing the cows, valued at ₦20 million, on November 27.

The livestock were said to be the property of Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar and Alhaji Muhammed Abubakar.

The alleged offence contravenes Sections 450 and 517 of the Oyo State Criminal Code Law, 2000.

The three farmers pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Presiding Magistrate Olabisi Ogunkanmi granted each defendant bail in the sum of ₦1 million, with two sureties in like sum, and adjourned the case until January 19, 2026, for further hearing.

The Supreme Court has overturned President Bola Tinubu’s decision to commute the death sentence of Maryam Sanda, ruling that the Executive acted outside its constitutional powers by granting clemency while her appeal was still active in court.

In a 4–1 split judgment delivered on Friday, the apex court reinstated the death penalty earlier imposed on Sanda by the Federal Capital Territory High Court and upheld by the Court of Appeal.

Sanda was convicted in 2020 for the murder of her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, during a domestic dispute in their Abuja residence.

The Supreme Court dismissed Sanda’s appeal, affirming that the prosecution successfully established a case of culpable homicide beyond reasonable doubt.

Reading the lead judgment, Justice Moore Adumein held that the presidential pardon was procedurally improper because the matter had not reached final judicial determination.

“It was wrong for the Executive to exercise its power of pardon over a case of culpable homicide in which an appeal was pending,” Justice Adumein stated.

The ruling nullifies President Tinubu’s October decision to commute Sanda’s death sentence to 12 years in prison, a move the Presidency said was motivated by compassion and her “good conduct” in custody.

The commutation had formed part of a revised clemency list that initially contained 175 names before several were removed due to the severity of their offences.

The presidential decision generated intense public debate and was strongly opposed by Bello’s family. Following consultations with the Council of State and reactions from the public, the Presidency later clarified that some names had been withdrawn from the list due to concerns over crimes such as kidnapping and arms-related offences.

Friday’s judgment means Sanda’s original death sentence remains in force, nullifying the earlier commutation.

She had already spent roughly six years in custody, and the reduced sentence would have left her with about six years to complete.

Bandits have killed the Vice Chairman of Bukuyum Local Government Area in Zamfara State, Mu’azu Muhammad Gwashi, despite receiving a ransom of N15 million for his release.

Gwashi had been held captive for more than six months, with his abductors initially demanding N30 million.

A resident, Malam Muhammad Mansur Sani, said members of the community struggled to gather the ransom before eventually raising N15 million.

“They asked for N30 million, but we couldn’t raise that amount. After collecting N15 million, they brought him back to the community. People saw him alive, but they later returned and took him back into the forest, where they killed him,” he said.

The Zamfara State Commissioner for Information, Hon. Mahmud Muhammad Dantawasa, expressed condolences to the family and residents of Bukuyum, calling the incident heartbreaking.

In a separate attack two days earlier, armed bandits invaded Saran Wawa village in the Ruwan Rana district and abducted five nursing mothers along with four others.

A relative of one of the victims, Malam Shehu, said the attack took place around midnight on December 8.

The nursing mothers, each carrying her infant, were taken to an unknown location, and the abductors have yet to contact the families.

A Kano State High Court has sentenced Abdulaziz Adamu to death by hanging for the murder of his employer, Alhaji Ali Alhassan, whom he abducted and killed after collecting a N15 million ransom.

Adamu, a resident of Dawakin Kudu Local Government Area, was found guilty on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, kidnapping, and culpable homicide.

His co-accused, Abdullahi Alhassan of Danladi Nasidi Quarters, was discharged and acquitted for lack of evidence.

According to the prosecution counsel, Lamido Abba-Sorondinki, the incident occurred on June 16, 2024, when the defendants abducted the victim in Dawakin Kudu.

“The defendants demanded and received N15 million ransom from the family. They then struck the victim on the head and chest with heavy sticks and buried his body at Adamu’s residence,” he told the court.

The prosecution presented two witnesses alongside Adamu’s confessional statement.

Both defendants, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Abba-Sorondinki said their actions violated Sections 97, 273, and 221(a) of the Penal Code Laws of Kano State.

The defence counsel, Hussaini Ahmad-Makari, presented the accused persons for their defence.

In her judgment, Justice Aisha Mahmoud ruled that the prosecution had established its case beyond reasonable doubt against Adamu.

“I hereby sentence Abdulaziz Adamu to death by hanging for inflicting fatal injuries on the victim. May God have mercy on his soul,” she declared.