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Owo Massacre: 38 People Have So Far Been Confirmed Dead – Church

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Authorities of the Diocese of Ondo on Tuesday said 38 persons have so far been confirmed dead in the Sunday terrorists’ attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State.

The Diocesan Bishop, Jude Arogundade, disclosed this in an interview with journalists.

Gunmen on Sunday attacked the church located on Owa-Luwa Street in Owo, the hometown of the State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, leaving many parishioners dead and several others injured.

But Arogundade said the diocese had been able to account for 38 victims.

He, however, said some families picked up corpses of their loved ones and those could not be accounted for by the diocese.

He said, “People have been asking me about the figure of those who died. The figure that we can account for presently is 38.

“But we know that many people were taken to private hospitals. Even some people came to take the bodies of their loved ones. We are trying to trace those people so that we can have a recount for all.

“But in the catholic hospital, which is St. Louis Hospital in Owo, and the Federal Medical Centre in Owo, we have 38 bodies.”

Meanwhile, Akeredolu said no fewer than 22 people were killed in the attack.

He said the attack affected 80 people out of which 22 lost their lives, while 56 survivors are on admission at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, St Louis Hospital, Owo, and the Owo General Hospital as well as some other private hospitals.

Akeredolu stated this on Tuesday during a statewide broadcast to the people of the state.

He said, “The total number of people involved was 80. As of now, 56 are on admission, two discharged, while the death toll is 22. Efforts have been deepened to prevent further casualties.

“The site, that is, St. Francis Catholic Church, Owaluwa, Owo presents a gory war-like scene. The Federal Medical Centre, Owo, the St. Louis Hospital, Owo, the General Hospital, and Owo as well as some private hospitals in Owo were filled with the injured, most of whom were in critical conditions.

“The most unfortunate part is the lives of innocent children cut down in their prime and some severely injured by the mindless attackers. At Owo, the anger was palpable. The tension was at an abrasive level just as the urge for reprisals was high. Without a doubt, too, the ripple impact of this heinous act as well as the understandably angry reaction across the state could not have been different.

“I urge our people to be calm but remain vigilant. Do not take the law into your own hands. Leave the rest for the government to shoulder.”

Who Pledges Support

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation said it would support the state government with emergency trauma materials to help it recover from the terror attack.

The WHO Country Representative and Head of Mission, Nigeria, Dr. Walter Mulombo, stated this when he led his team to visit Akeredolu.

“The World Health Organisation is committed to supporting your state to respond to all hazards and emergencies, including following up on such unfortunate incidents,” he said.

BIG STORY

US Court Sends British-Nigerian To Seven Years In Jail Over $5m Cyber Fraud

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Oludayo Adeagbo, a British-Nigerian, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar business email compromise (BEC) scheme.

According to the US Department of Justice, Adeagbo, who also goes by John Edwards and John Dayo, conspired with others to steal over $3 million from various entities in Texas, including local government bodies, construction companies, and a Houston-area college.

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators also defrauded a North Carolina university of more than $1.9 million.

The case began in August 2022 when Adeagbo and two other Nigerian citizens, Donald Echeazu, 42, and Olabanji Egbinola, 44, were extradited from the United Kingdom (UK), where they had been residing, to face charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering.

The US Department of Justice stated that the offences were committed in North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

On April 8, Adeagbo pleaded guilty in two cases against him in North Carolina and Texas for participating in a business email compromise scheme, which is also referred to as a “cyber-enabled financial fraud” scheme.

A business email compromise scheme can be initiated by scammers creating fake accounts that mimic companies a business regularly deals with.

Court records revealed that Adeagbo and his co-conspirators gathered information about significant construction projects across the United States, including a multi-million-dollar project at a university in North Carolina.

“To execute the scheme, Adeagbo, Echeazu, and others registered a domain name similar to that of the legitimate construction company in charge of the university’s project and created an email address that closely resembled that of an employee of the construction company,” the Department of Justice said.

“Using the fake email address, the fraudsters deceived and directed the university to wire a payment of more than $1.9 million to a bank account controlled by an individual working under the direction of Adeagbo and his co-conspirators.”

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators employed the same tactics in Texas, targeting local government entities and universities by impersonating construction companies. They stole over $3 million from the scheme, bringing their total haul to $5 million.

Adeagbo has been ordered to pay $942,655.03 in restitution and will serve seven years in prison.

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Nigerian-American Oye Owolewa Re-Elected To US Congress

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Oye Owolewa, a Nigerian-American Democrat, has been re-elected as the shadow representative for the District of Columbia (DC).

Owolewa, a PhD graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, made history in November 2020 when he became the first Nigerian-American elected to Congress.

He secured 164,026 votes, or 82.84 percent of the total votes cast in DC.

His role, while not officially recognized by the US government as a full member of Congress, is to advocate for the district’s interests, particularly its bid for statehood.

On Thursday, Owolewa expressed his gratitude to DC voters via a post on X, thanking them for their continued support.

“Thank you DC again for giving me chance to serve. I also want to thank the organizations that have supported, partnered with and endorsed me,” he wrote.

While shadow representatives like Owolewa do not have voting power in the US House of Representatives, they play a key role in pushing for recognition and state-level advocacy for DC residents, who are otherwise disenfranchised at the federal level.

Owolewa has consistently championed the cause of DC statehood, which has become a central focus of his work.

The re-election took place on November 5, the same day as the US presidential election.

In that election, former President Donald Trump defeated Vice-President Kamala Harris, securing over 270 electoral votes to win a second term.

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Joe Biden Urges Americans To Accept Trump’s Victory, Promises Peaceful Transition

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United States President Joe Biden has urged Americans to accept the victory of Republican Party candidate Donald Trump in the presidential election.

On November 6, Trump won the presidential election after surpassing the magic number of 270 electoral college votes.

Trump defeated Kamala Harris of the Democratic Party, who received 219 electoral college votes.

Harris has congratulated Trump on his electoral victory.

During a speech on Thursday at the White House Rose Garden, Biden said, “We accept the choice the country made.”

“I know for some people, it’s time for victory to state the obvious. For others, it’s a time of loss,” the US president said.

“Campaigns are contests of competing visions. The country chooses one or the other.

“I’ve said many times, you can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t love your neighbour only when you agree.

“I will do my duty as president. I’ll fulfil my oath and honour the Constitution. On January 20, we will have a peaceful transfer of power here in America.

“Remember, defeat does not mean we are defeated. We lost this battle. The America of your dream is calling for you to get back up.

“The America experiment endures. We are going to be okay, but we need to stay engaged. We need to keep going. Above all, we need to keep the faith.”

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