A former senator representing Adamawa North, Elisha Abbo, has denied claims of creating 32 sex tapes with a lady named Wange David and is threatening legal action.

David claimed in a recent interview to have made 32 sex tapes with Abbo and accused him of leaking a particular clip that has been making the rounds on the internet, accusing the former Senator of attempting to ruin her marriage.

However, Abbo, through his lawyer, Odiyowvi Osusu, denied the allegations, saying, “Our client has been made aware of a series of videos published on social media and online media platforms to deliberately and maliciously malign his person.”

Wange “falsely and maliciously used defamatory words” against Abbo, according to Abbo’s counsel, by explicitly accusing him of sexual exploitation, publishing and distributing intimate videos, the spread of revenge porn, and blackmail.

Abbo’s counsel, however, demanded that Wange publish a public retraction and apology on national TV and in three national newspapers within 72 hours of receiving the letter.

According to the counsel, failure to comply with this demand will result in legal action being taken against Wange.

Abbo’s counsel stated, “These videos have not only caused significant reputational damage to our client but are also misleading to the public. The statements and claims made in these videos are factually incorrect and have resulted in unnecessary harrn to our client’s personal and professional reputation.

“We have been instructed by our client to make a demand, and we hereby formally request that within 72 hours of receiving this letter, you publish or air an unequivocal public retraction and apology on national TV and in three national newspapers.

“The terms of this retraction must be approved by our firm, and we expect you to revert to us within 24 hours of receipt of this letter.

“You shall also be expected to circulate the retraction and apology on the same platforms wherein your interviews were circulated.

“Save and except we receive a satisfactory reply from you within the timelines as stipulated above.”

The Rivers Police Command has busted a job racketeering syndicate that allegedly specialises in advertising non-existent employment vacancies to defraud unsuspecting job seekers.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Olatunji Disu, disclosed this at a news conference in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.

Disu said that operatives from the command successfuly rescued 16 victims held by the gang during a raid of its hideout.

He said that the syndicate was uncovered when officers from the Octopus Strike Force responded to a distress call from concerned residents, who suspected a hostage situation.

“Police operatives acted swiftly and raided a compound in Igwuruta, Ikwerre Local Government Area, arresting one Chukwudi Okoli, who had been posing as an employee of Ojoseansel International Global Limited.

“During the operation, one Amiye Joseph and 15 other victims, comprising 13 males and two females, were rescued and taken to the station.

“Preliminary investigations revealed that each of the victims had paid between N650,000 and N850,000 to the fraudulent company,” Disu said.

He further alleged that the company had “falsely promised the victims jobs in the oil and gas industry, with salaries purportedly paid in US dollars.

“The fraudsters operated by randomly selecting phone numbers and contacting potential victims, introducing them to fake job opportunities.

“They would then invite the victims to Port Harcourt for bogus interviews.

“Investigators further discovered that after extorting large sums of money, the victims were detained in a facility, where they were closely monitored,” Disu said.

He further disclosed that the company also allegedly subjected its victims to training sessions in its hideouts.

He alleged that the victims were taught how to deceive their friends into believing in fraudulent job offers, with the promise of earning 450 US dollars per week.

He said that items recovered from the gang’s operational base included mobile cellphones, laptops, television sets, generators, industrial fans, and office furniture.

A total number of nine bodies have been recovered so far from the boat mishap in Zamfara State.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed this in a post it shared on its X account on Tuesday morning.

“On Saturday, September 14, 2024, a tragic boat accident occurred in Mashayar yandaga, (old market site) Gummi Township, within the Gummi Local Government Area (LGA) of Zamfara State,” NEMA wrote.

“An assessment of the incident was conducted on Monday, September 16, 2024, following reports of the disaster.

“The boat which was carrying over 40 passengers, mostly farmers and crew men capsized as a result of overload and high river current.

“Local divers and fishermen managed to rescue five persons alive. Sadly, nine bodies have been recovered so far as search and rescue operations continue.”

The agency added that many individuals including men, women and children remain unaccounted for.

According to the post, the assessment was carried out by officials from NEMA, the Zamfara Emergency Management Agency (ZEMA), local government authorities, community leaders, the Red Cross and other stakeholders.

A bus carrying Muslim faithful celebrating the birth of Prophet Mohammed crashed in northern Nigeria’s Kaduna state, killing at least 25 children, an official told AFP Tuesday.

Organisers of the religious pilgrimage gave a higher toll of 40, with 31 injured.

The accident occurred on Sunday when the speeding bus overloaded with young adherents of the Tijjaniyya Sufi order lost control and crashed into a truck in Lere district, Kabiru Nadabo, head of the local office of Nigeria’s road safety agency, FRSC, said.

“The bus was overloaded with 63 children and the driver was speeding recklessly when he lost control and rammed into an articulated truck,” Nadabo said.

“Fifteen of them died on the spot while 48 injured were taken to various hospitals, among which 10 died the following day, raising the death toll to 25,” he said.

The children were from Kwandare village and heading to the nearby town of Saminaka for the annual Maulud festivities marking the birth of the Prophet, said Nadabo.

He said the death toll could have changed since the injured were taken to hospitals in various locations and he did not get further updates.

Dikko Dahiru, one of the organisers of the trip, said 40 children were killed in the accident, while 31 were injured.

“The bus was carrying 71 passengers and 36 died instantly while four more died in hospital the next day,” said Dahiru, whose nephew was among the dead.

“Thirty-one were taken to hospitals with severe injuries, 11 of them in critical condition,” he said.

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu offered his condolences to the victims’ families and those injured, adding that he had “prayed for the repose of the souls of the departed”.

In a statement on Tuesday, the president also said he instructed the FRSC “to improve highway monitoring and reduce the number of road accidents nationwide”.

Road accidents are common on Nigeria’s poorly maintained roads due largely to speeding and disregard for traffic rules.

“I am a rapist,” said a Frenchman accused of drugging his wife so that he and dozens of strangers could sexually assault her, his first testimony in a trial that has horrified France.

Dominique Pelicot, 71, begged her forgiveness.

But he said he was no different from 50 other men he recruited online to take part in the sexual abuse, adding they all knew what they were signing up for.

“I am a rapist, like the others in this room,” he said, referring to his co-defendants.

“They all knew” it would be rape, he said.

“She did not deserve this,” he added.

Earlier on Tuesday, Pelicot had used a walking stick to slowly enter the courtroom in the southern city of Avignon, where his now ex-wife Gisele was present for the painful testimony.

With her trademark auburn bob and sunglasses, 71-year-old Gisele has become a feminist icon since she demanded that the trial be made open to the public to raise awareness about the use of drugs to commit sexual abuse.

Pelicot is accused of administering anti-anxiety drugs to his wife over a period of almost a decade, from 2011 to 2020, so that he and others could rape her while unconscious, mostly at home in the small southern town of Mazan.

He has admitted the charges but Tuesday was the first time he spoke at any length since the trial began on September 2.

He recounted having a “difficult” childhood, saying his parents “assaulted each other”.

He briefly mentioned the “traumatic” experiences of being raped when he was nine years old and again on a construction site where he was an apprentice.

“I always carried these traumatising events with me,” he said, his eyes welling up and his voice shaking.

“You’re not born this way. You become it.”

– ‘I must pay for it’ –

His ex-wife, who obtained a divorce from him last month, remained stoic as he spoke, then took the stand herself.

“Not for a single second did I doubt this man,” she said.

“I loved this man for 50 years. I would have sacrificed my own two hands for him.”

Her former husband asked her for forgiveness.

“I am guilty of what I have done. I beg my wife, my children, my grandchildren… to accept my apologies. I ask for forgiveness, even though it is unacceptable,” he said.

“I messed it all up… I must pay for it.”

He also presented his apologies to another woman, whose husband and he are accused of raping using the same modus operandi.

But he said he had never abused his two sons and daughter.

“I had three children, who I never touched,” he said.

The investigation revealed that Pelicot had on his computer naked pictures of his daughter and intimate photos of his two daughters-in-law, taken without their knowledge.

He was only found out in 2020 after he was caught filming up women’s skirts in a supermarket.

Police discovered he had meticulously documented the abuse of his wife, stored in files on his computer.

“There was a certain pleasure to it,” he said of the filing, “but it was also a sort of guarantee.”

He pointed out that it had helped track down suspects, causing several co-defendants to look up or smile nervously.

– Fireman, nurse, journalist –

Investigators listed 72 men suspected of having taken part in abusing Gisele Pelicot other than her husband.

They succeeded in identifying 50, aged from 26 to 74, all of whom are on trial.

Pelicot’s testimony is expected to be decisive for all these co-defendants, four of whose cases are set to be heard in the coming days.

Some of the accused have admitted he told them he was drugging his then-wife, while others claim they believed they were participating in a swinger couple’s fantasy.

Seventeen are in custody, as is Pelicot himself, while 32 other defendants are attending as free men.

One co-defendant is being tried in absentia.

The suspects include a fireman, a male nurse, a prison guard and a journalist.

The case has prompted outrage across France, with thousands demonstrating in cities at the weekend to demand an end to rape.

Pelicot was excused from hearings for much of last week and did not attend court on Monday.

His lawyer Beatrice Zavarro told AFP he was suffering from “a clot in the bladder” and the beginning of a kidney infection.

But he returned to the dock on Tuesday after a green light from doctors, with his lawyer saying he would be allowed “regular rest”.

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) has declared one person dead and eight others injured in an accident that occurred on the Third Mainland Bridge on Monday.

The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq gave the details of the fatal accident in a statement on X.

“A tragic and fatal head-on collision involving two Mazda commercial buses (LND 624 YE / EKY 804 YH) occurred on the Third Mainland Bridge, near Ilaje, en route to Iyana-Oworonsoki, resulting in one fatality and leaving eight others grievously injured,” Taofiq said.

“The harrowing incident, which unfolded as both buses recklessly engaged in a high-speed chase from Adeniji Adele serves as a stark reminder of the catastrophic consequences of irresponsible driving practices.

“Swift intervention by LASTMA facilitated the rapid rescue of eight passengers, all of whom suffered severe fractures. The injured were immediately transported to Gbagada General Hospital for urgent medical care, courtesy of the Lagos State Ambulance Services (LASAMBUS).

“Police units from Bariga and Alonge Police Stations were instrumental in providing critical security support during the rescue operation, ensuring order and expediting the efforts to restore normalcy.”

LASTMA has reiterated its unwavering commitment to ensuring road safety and implored all motorists to strictly observe speed regulations and exercise caution while driving.

The agency has also extended its heartfelt condolences to the family of the bereaved and wished the injured a swift and full recovery.

In a related development, another accident occurred earlier on Monday involving a Honda CRV (AKD 743 HV) which overturned on the Third Mainland Bridge near the Unilag waterfront, also inbound Iyana-Oworonsoki.

The crash, attributed to excessive speeding, resulted in no casualties. LASTMA personnel acted swiftly to clear the wreckage, preventing any further obstruction to the free flow of traffic on the bridge.