Crime
Medical doctor clubs colleague in midnight squabble

Medical doctor clubs colleague in midnight squabble
By: Bodunrin Kayode
They started the day peacefully as a team in Damboa a sleepy council head quarters community located about 89km from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital north east Nigeria. No one suspected that tragedy was lurking behind the corner before the usual long night creeps into the compound of Medecins Du Monde (MDM). MDM is a French non governmental organization (NGO) which is involved in medical support to residents in Damboa and of course resident internally displaced people (IDPs). They have their headquarters in Maiduguri. Eleven of the staff of MDM including two security guards live and work inside the MDM guest house compound in Damboa. There was no sign of tension before the end of that working day even in their nearby clinic were the aggressor Dr James Korinjo works with his colleague Dr Francis Akume.

Just about 11.30 pm, on that 17th March, trouble started. Dr James Korinjo who started work with MDM in December 2023 knocked and entered the room of his colleague Dr Francis Akume. Instead of his trade mark stethoscope, he was armed with a knife, screw driver and surgical scissors in his hand obviously to unleash harm. He locked the door behind him and started intimidating his colleague Francis to comply to his devilish demands or prepare for deadly repercussions.
After demanding for the android phone of his colleague Francis, he started a strange live broadcast on Facebook with the phone when he was sure he had gotten him cornered and can film him effectively. Francis a tall lanky young fellow had no choice but to comply at the wrongs done to him because James Korinjo was obviously angry and wanted a revenge over some unexplained bottled up issues with his colleagues as related in the live broadcast made available to this reporter.
Till today, no one can assess the mental status of the strange behavior of this doctor. Even if he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), nobody has been able to ascertain. There has been several cases of PTSD among military and non governmental organizations within the war theatre of operations Hadin Kai especially at Damboa. But the behavior of James Korinjo believed to be normal was outright unprofessional and if not that Dr Francis had to dodge some of the hits from the weapons in his hand, he would be a dead man by now.
Hear Dr Francis: ” After instructing me to sit on the bed under duress, Korinjo accused us of poisoning him. He also said we connived with the military to do all manner of harm to him which i don’t understand. He started a live video recording and forced me to say all manner of things i never did into his recording. He virtually forced me to say what i didn’t do and i was helpless in the circumstance. He said i was a small boy but i was making him look small in the organization. He also said that from the coordinator to the field coordinator, we planned to kill him. He actually used my phone for the live broadcast to make people believe it was real and it was done with my approval. Meanwhile i was sitting on the lower side on the bed helplessly watching what next he will do.

” While we were going through the struggle between life and death in my room, Judith Peter our sexual and reproductive health officer came by the window to find out what was going on. She called my name, Francis what is going on? I couldn’t help myself because he was facing me with the weapons i mentioned. So she yelled at James to stop his assault on me which i kept dodging to stay alive. But James would not bulge. And when the entire compound were at the scene and saw that he was adamant, they pounced on the door to my room and brought it down to free me from his hands before he landed the last stab which was meant to kill me.
“Saminu Lewi our data man was one of those who rushed in to disarm him and free me. Sadly in the process he got hit by one of the weapons he was holding. He was badly afflicted with a cut on his head and chest and he too had to be given medical treatment at the Damboa military base to stop his bleeding. He also attended the UMTH for further treatment and is recuperating now.
Assault on Augustine Sharah with a wrench
Meanwhile the head of the MDM in Damboa, Augustine Sharah in a bid to ensure his staff were safe was moving from one room to the other to check his people. And to ensure that another scenario is not playing in another room without them knowing. While going around, he did not know that James was lurking in the corner and targeting him too for an attack. And before he could turn to see who was trailing him, he was hit on the left side of his head by a massive wrench which dealt a nasty blow on him bringing him down unconscious. He said he was told the moment James injured him, the policemen and CJTF were summoned to the compound. The rest of the occupants hibernated to somewhere else and the gate to the house was locked so he couldn’t escape. His arrest was made in the morning. They (policemen and CJTF) kept vigilance all through the night to ensure he doesn’t escape.
According to the medical report, he had “severe traumatic injury, multiple fracture on the scull, sinusitis that resulted in blood oozing out from his nose and mouth, cerebral contusion and oedema/haemorrhage.
After Augustine lost consciousness he was rushed to the nearby military base for urgent first aid to bring him back to life. “The military guys did their best but suggested that his case must be taken to the UMTH as fast as possible to bring him back to consciousness.” Days after being revived at the UMTH, Augustine managed to compose himself and sat down for a long chat with this reporter.
His words: “I became unconscious after the blow on my head by that heavy equipment from James Korinjo. Actually, to answer your question on how those stuffs got to our compound, i can tell you right away that there is no department of works with us. But there was maintenance work that was done in the compound last year and some tools were bought by the organization to help out. I suppose that’s were he got the adjustable spanner (wrench) which he had access to assault me. I was obviously taken to UMTH the following day which was 18th March and i stayed there till 10th of April 2024. I went back for follow up on 8/05/2024. That will determine the next course of action. Meaning if i will be taken to Abuja for superior treatment or abroad to bring back my slurred speech. I was a normal man well coordinated in speech before this attack but now i struggle to express myself. On your question on treatment abroad, the MDM has not discussed taking me abroad yet. This was something we thought was going to happen from the beginning but it didn’t happen. However, they have been talking about seeking other specialist opinion in Abuja.”
Tormenting ordeal at the UMTH
While Augustine was at the UMTH, his wife said they were psychologically harassed by friends and agents of James Korinjo who came in on the 25th of March in the name of checking on him. One Meshelia claiming to be a medical personnel putting on a lab coat came to check on him and left.
But on the 23rd of March, three people who claimed to be family members of James Korinjo barged on him and verbally assaulted Augustine in the presence of his wife accusing him of wanting to punish James for nothing. They accused the wounded man managing to reciprocate on his sick bed of pretending to be ill. After James has inflicted so much harm on him with many witnesses around in Damboa yet they said he was well but pretending to be ill. The friends went ahead to harass him by barging in on him while he was eating and recuperating inside the amenities ward and even snapping his pictures without his permission. They committed a lot of dangerous and unethical atrocities on a patient that should have his privacy even after being moved from the “trauma centre” to the amenities where he was entitled to privacy. Imagine a patient suffering from Dysarthria or -slurred speech due to traumatic brain injury following the assault on his head going through such ordeal based on the directive of Korinjo’s mother who came to town desperately to free her son then in police custody. They sneaked in beating the security of UMTH to harass him consistently. Augustine was however released to go home on the 10th of April and has been taking medications awaiting further verdict of the doctors based on progress he has been making.
On Saminu the second staff assaulted by Korinjo, he was not admitted into the teaching hospital but he was released same day. He kept going for wounded dressing and injections from 18/03/24 to 22/03/24. His stitches were removed on that 22/03/24 and he is alive and stable for now.
Korinjo desperate petition and reaction of the police spokesman
As at the time of writing this report, Dr korinjo was said to have jumped bail and escaped from maiduguri with the help of his mother. He was said to have informed close friends that he was going off to jos to seek for medical treatment. One wonders which treatment he is looking for having written a libelous petition to the Police inspector General alleging bad treatment in the custody of the Borno State Command. Nobody seems to be aware of his exact location now after jumping bail. And nobody is aware if Dr Korinjo was suspended or sacked for bad behavior by MDM known for extreme secrecy in their operations in Borno. Even the head of the Damboa centre doesn’t know his whereabout as at the time of writing this report.
“I have no access to official decisions. I have not been consulted about such. Since the incident I have been focused on recovering.” said head of centre Augustine. After the misdemeanor of Korinjo, a case was filed on the 19th of April against him. The case file is yet to be awarded to a judge as at the time this reporter visited the ministry of justice. But there is assurance that the case will soon come up at least for mention.
Attempts to get the investigating police officer (IPO) Yakubu Gadzama to speak on the matter was turned down. But the police spokesman Nahum Daso an Assistant superintendent of police confirmed that Korinjo has indeed jumped bail. This is because he did not show up according to the bail conditions the police gave to him. He however assured that the Police are on top of the matter as expected. He frowned at the massive bad campaign against the command by the family of Korinjo who are trying to run away from the reality. As at the time of filing this report, Korinjo’s family through his mother who visited Maiduguri was said to have directed their lawyer to file another counter case in Abuja against the Nigerian police and Augustine. The filed suit was served on them on the 19th of last month by one Hassan Bemdo esq.
Medical doctor clubs colleague in midnight squabble
Crime
Police Arrest Four Suspected Kidnappers, Rescue Four Victims in Lagos-Ogun Border

Police Arrest Four Suspected Kidnappers, Rescue Four Victims in Lagos-Ogun Border
The Lagos State Police Command has arrested four suspected kidnappers and rescued four victims held in captivity at Oke Aro, a border community between Lagos and Ogun states.
Police sources confirmed that one of the victims, Okorie Henry, managed to escape and reported the case at the Iju Police Division at about 3:30 p.m. on March 31. Henry told the police that he and four others had been forcefully taken into custody by a group of armed hoodlums.
He was able to convince his captors that he had received money in his account and needed to withdraw it at a bank. During the trip, he fled and alerted the authorities.
Following his report, a police team was mobilized to the scene, leading to the rescue of four victims: Otoh Chisom (20), Okeke Kwufrochukwu (26), Uchenna Obeji (26), and Minachi Udochukwu (12).
The police also arrested four suspects identified as Chibike Iheijika (23), Stanley Iheijika (22), Obiora Oyedibe (26), and Emmanuel Onedibe (25).
The command said investigations are ongoing to apprehend other accomplices and determine the full extent of the criminal operation.
Police Arrest Four Suspected Kidnappers, Rescue Four Victims in Lagos-Ogun Border
Crime
Sokoto: Armed Bandits Repelled; Stray Bullet Kills Villager

Sokoto: Armed Bandits Repelled; Stray Bullet Kills Villager
By: Zagazola Makama
A group of approximately 90 armed bandits, riding on motorcycles, attempted to attack Tozai village in Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State on March 31, 2025.
The bandits were confronted by a combined team of Military and Police forces, which engaged them in a gunfight, forcing the assailants to retreat.
Unfortunately, during the exchange of fire, a stray bullet from the bandits struck 35-year-old Sule Ummaru, a resident of Tozai village, who was attempting to escape the scene. He was rushed to General Hospital Isa but later succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment.
Security forces have continued patrols in the area to ensure further safety and deter any future attacks.
Sokoto: Armed Bandits Repelled; Stray Bullet Kills Villager
Crime
Businessman Arrested Over Illicit Drug Shipments from US into Nigeria

Businessman Arrested Over Illicit Drug Shipments from US into Nigeria
By: Michael Mike
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, have arrested a Lekki-based businessman and proprietor of Damillionz Takeout, Arokodare Damil Ebenezer in connection with the shipment of 60 parcels of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis, from the United States of America to Nigeria.
The spokesman of the NDLEA, Femi Babafemi said the 43-year-old businessman was arrested at Bay Lounge, Admiralty Way, Lekki area of Lagos where he does his illicit drug business last Monday while he was expecting to take the delivery of his latest drug consignment.

Babafemi said the suspect arrest followed the seizure of his cargo that arrived Nigeria in seven big cartons at a logistics company in Lagos on 12th March by NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation
(DOGI).
After his arrest, he was taken to his Lekki home for a search during which 94 grammes of the same psychoactive substance, cannabis crusher and other drug paraphernalia were recovered, bringing the total weight of the drug seized from him to 32.24 kilogrammes.
In his statement, he claimed he started the illicit drug business in 2017.
Attempt by another businessman Omoruyi Terry to export 1,400 pills of tramadol 225mg weighing 800 grammes to Italy has also been thwarted by NDLEA officers at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
Babafemi said Omoruyi was intercepted at the screening point of terminal 2 of the Lagos airport on his way to Italy via a Qatar Airways flight. Investigation reveals the suspect is an Italy based frequent traveler and logistics agent.
In Katsina, four suspects: Baraka Abubakar, 40; Haruna Alitine, 23; Muhammad Babangida, 20; and Hamisu Lawal, were arrested last Friday during an intelligence led raid operation at Godai village in Daura local government area where 684 blocks of compressed skunk, a strain of cannabis weighing 423 kilogrammes and 86,000 pills of diazepam were recovered from them. The three male suspects were arrested while repackaging the diazepam tablets into other containers while Baraka, the female suspect was apprehended with the heaps of skunk in her house.
The NDLEA spokesman said not less than 13,198 kilogrammes of cannabis sativa were destroyed in Edo forests across parts of the state between last Monday and Friday by NDLEA operatives who also evacuated 158 kilogrammes of same substance for possible prosecution.
He disclosed that the forests where no fewer than four cannabis plantations were discovered and destroyed include: Uhen forest, Ovia North East local government area. Sobe, Owan West local government area; and Amahor forest in Igueben local government area.
In Niger state, NDLEA officers on patrol along Mokwa-Jebba road last Friday intercepted a black Toyota Corolla car marked SLM 137 SV and arrested the two occupants in possession of 179 blocks of compressed skunk with a total weight of 77.6 kilogrammes concealed in false bottom of the vehicle. The two suspects are: Paul Christopher, 46, and Lucky Anumie. In another operation, 50 kilogrammes skunk was on Saturday recovered from the home of a suspect, Isa Iliya, who is currently at large, in Wawa village, Borgu council area of the state.
While 108.5kg of skunk was recovered from lockup shops at Aria New Market, in Enugu metropolis, Enugu state by NDLEA operatives last Tuesday, 25 kilogrammes of same substance was seized from a suspect Abdulrazak Saka at Kilako Area of Ilorin, Kwara State last Monday. Another suspect Sulk Saheed, 50, was nabbed with 2.5 kilogrammes of Ghanaian Loud and 515 grammes of Colorado, at Olomi Academy area of Ibadan, Oyo state.
Babafemi said with the same vigour, commands and formations of the agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities to schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week.
Meanwhile, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd) while commending the officers and men of MMIA, DOGI, Edo, Kwara, Niger, Enugu, Oyo and Katsina commands of the agency for the arrests and seizures, stated that their operational successes and those of their compatriots across the country especially their balanced approach to drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts are well appreciated. He extended eid-el-fitr greetings to them, their families, other stakeholders and Nigerians at large.
He added that: “May the spirit of obedience and sacrifice that defines this special day guide and strengthen us as we remain steadfast in our pursuit of a drug-free society. May Allah continue to bless and guide us and may our collective efforts bring us closer to a safer and healthier society for all.”
Businessman Arrested Over Illicit Drug Shipments from US into Nigeria
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