1. In a major crackdown on private jet owners over billions of naira in unpaid import duties, the Federal Government, through the Nigerian Customs Service, has grounded a US-registered Gulfstream G650ER jet owned by a leading Nigerian bank. This move marks the beginning of an intensified effort to ensure compliance with customs regulations among private jet owners in the country.
2. In other news, tragedy struck in Ogun State as a rice farmer, Taiwo Paul, was reportedly murdered by suspected herders in the Kata Area of Ewekoro Local Government. In a separate incident, another farmer, Peter Danjuma, died of electrocution in the Isoyin area of Atan-Ijebu.
3. Insecurity continues to plague the region, as no fewer than 20 travellers were abducted by gunmen along the Sagamu-Ijebu-Ode Expressway on Sunday evening. One of the victims sustained a gunshot wound to the knee. The incident occurred between the Sagamu Area Command of the Nigeria Police and Ilisan township.
4. Outrage has erupted over a UK-based taxi driver who remains on the Federal Government’s payroll despite migrating to the UK in 2022. A BBC report identified the individual as a 36-year-old Nigerian civil servant named Sabitu Adams (not his real name). Adams moved to the United Kingdom in 2022 but continues to receive a salary as a civil servant in Nigeria.
5. Meanwhile, the Ekiti State government has rejected a proposed plan by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) and the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) to impose a nine-hour daily blackout in the state for two months, starting in July. TCN’s notice cited the need for critical maintenance work on the 132kV Akure Osogbo transmission line.
6. Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf has issued a strong warning to drug dealers in the state, stating that there will be no peace for those involved in illicit drug activities. The Governor’s remarks come in response to bold attempts by drug dealers seeking legal recourse through court orders for the release of their confiscated drug shipments.
7. In Edo State, Governor Godwin Obaseki has expressed satisfaction with his administration’s performance over the past seven and a half years, claiming that his government has delivered on and surpassed all electioneering promises made to the people.
8. Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) successfully disrupted a drug party in Abuja, arresting 60 suspects, including 25 males and 35 females, at an apartment in Sun City Estate. The NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, stated that the raid was conducted following credible intelligence about the drug party, which was dubbed ‘Go Hard or Go Home: Pick Your Poison.’
9. In Borno State, the death toll from last weekend’s suicide bomb attacks at a wedding ceremony in Gwoza has risen to 18, with at least 42 others sustaining injuries of varying degrees, according to the Director General of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Dr Barkindo Saidu.
10. Lastly, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has refuted reports that Martins Vincent Otse, also known as Verydarkman, has been arrested. The police clarified that Otse was only invited for questioning regarding allegations of cyberstalking, cyberbullying, and defamation of character.
