Police Confirm Retrieving Ebonyi Ex-Senator's Corpse From Pond

Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase

The Ebonyi Police Command has confirmed the retrieval of the corpse of a Second Republic Senator, Offia Nwali, from a pond behind his house. George Okafor, the Command's Public Relations Officer (PPRO), made the confirmation to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abakaliki on Tuesday.




He said Mr. Nwali's corpse was found in a pond at the back of his building in his hometown of Ameka, Ezza South Local Government Area, at the weekend. "We cannot establish whether he drowned inside the pond or whether he was killed but investigations have commenced to unravel the mystery behind his death.

"We have not made any arrest so far but we assure the citizens of the state that we would ensure that the matter is investigated to its logical conclusion," he said. Meanwhile, Gov. David Umahi of Ebonyi has described the death of 74-year-old Nwali as a 'monumental loss' to the state and nation.

Mr. Umahi, who commiserated with Mr. Nwali's family during a condolence visit on Tuesday, described him as a great scientist and patriotic Nigerian. "His death is shocking to all citizens of the state as his life which was full of mysteries, embodied truth and commitment to the state's cause," he said.

The governor, who was accompanied by the Secretary to the State Government, Bernard Odoh, and top government officials, urged Mr. Nwali's children to immortalise him. "You should live just and principled lives which your late father epitomised during his sojourn on earth .

"The state government would assist the family during his burial and afterwards while upholding the legacies he left behind," he said. Mr. Nwali's first son, Oguzor, said that his corpse had been deposited at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki mortuary.

Oguzor described his father as a legend, noting that his love for the unity of the state, Igbo race and Nigeria, knew no bounds. Mr. Nwali was one of the first Africans to obtain a doctorate degree in Computer and Analytical Studies from Harvard University, U.S.

His return to Nigeria in 1972 was facilitated by a former Inspector General of Police, Muhammadu Yusuf, as he was appointed Chairman of the School Board by the then East Central State Government. He represented Abakaliki Senatorial District at the National Assembly from 1979 to 1983 and was the first individual to submit a written request for the creation of Ebonyi on Oct. 10, 1979.

Mr. Nwali lost his entire family in a Forker 28-plane crash at the Enugu Airport in 1983 but later remarried. NAN also recalls that the Police Command in Ebonyi on Monday confirmed the retrieval of the corpses of two students of Federal Government College, Okposi in Ohaoazara Local Government Area , from a stream in the area.

APC asks Fayose to clarify role in alleged N650m Abuja land deal

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has challenged Governor Ayodele Fayose to explain how he got N650 million to purchase a land in Abuja allegedly transferred to the retired Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Vice Marshal Alex Badeh, currently facing trial over alleged misappropriation of defence vote, Guardian.ng reports



The party said the governor’s response has become imperative following his refusal to declare his assets publicly, including allegations of fraud raised against him.
APC claimed that a witness in Badeh’s trial on Monday, at a Federal High Court, Abuja allegedly testified that the governor was the owner of a N650 million land that had variously changed hands before being finally acquired by the immediate past CDS.

In a statement in Ado-Ekiti by its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the party said Ekiti people would want to know the details of the governor’s properties and how he acquired them in the face of “several allegations of illegal fund transfers, including the $35 million he allegedly got from the Office of the National Security Adviser to prosecute his election in what is now known as Ekitigate.

But in a swift yesterday, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Idowu Adelusi, advised the APC to present any evidence against his principal to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC.)

Virginia teen handcuffed, charged with theft of ‘free’ milk

A black Virginia student was handcuffed and charged with stealing a 65-cent pack of milk, which he already had the right to procure for free. Police applied larceny charges anyway, because he allegedly “concealed” the milk.




According to rt.com, after the May 10 incident, the student named Ryan was also suspended from Graham Park Middle School in Triangle, Virginia. That day Ryan, who is entitled to the school’s free lunch program, went back to the lunch line to get his milk, according to his mother Shamise Turk. Later, a Prince William County Police Officer accused Ryan of stealing the milk and charged him with larceny. Ryan has since been ordered to appear in juvenile court.

"I'm angry, I'm frustrated, I'm mad. It just went too far. They are charging him with larceny, which I don't have no understanding as to why he is being charged with larceny when he was entitled to that milk from the beginning,” Turk told WTVR news. "This is ridiculous ... this is beyond embarrassing ... he's at home for 65 cents."

Even though Ryan was within his right to obtain the milk for free, the police said larceny was applied because he “concealed” the milk. At the same time, the school insists the suspension was a “disciplinary action” that Ryan deserved given how he behaved when the situation unfolded. Besides the theft, he allegedly was disrespectful and used his cell phone in school.

According to authorities, he “became disorderly” forcing police officers to use handcuffs on him. Ryan admitted that he “yanked away” from the officer and “told him to get off of me because he's not my dad.”

"Because he was fidgety, kept pulling on the strings of his pants, and laughing when we were trying to talk to him and just wouldn't talk," his mother said of his behavior. She also said that her son was taken to the principal's office and searched for drugs.