Viral News Portal
Viral News Portal
The family of Utibe Asian, a 300-level Theatre Arts student of the University of Uyo, has raised the alarm over his continued captivity months after allegedly paying N500,000 ransom to his abductors.
Utibe, from Obio Etoi in Uyo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, was reportedly declared missing on 2 December 2025 after leaving home to meet a friend who contacted him through phone number 09066935255.
Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Apo, Abuja, on Monday, 18 May 2026, sustained the arrest warrant earlier issued against former Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Sadiya Umar Farouq.
The judge had issued the warrant on 16 April 2026.
Farouq, alongside two others, Bashir Nura Alkali and Sani Nafiu Mohammed, is to face prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged criminal conspiracy, abuse of office and diversion of public funds amounting to $1.3 million and N746.7 million.
Anambra Police operatives attached to the Rapid Response Squad, Awkuzu, in the early hours of 16 May 2026, acting on credible intelligence, stormed a hideout in Umudike Community, Awka, and arrested a 30-year-old suspect, Okechukwu Chinweko, popularly known as “Bullet”, over his alleged involvement in abduction, rape and unlawful possession of a firearm.
The suspect reportedly had the inscription “Bullet” tattooed boldly on his arm.
A renowned environmental activist and Director of the Health of Mother Earth Foundation, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, has called for urgent environmental and health audits across the Niger Delta, warning that abandoned oil facilities and unchecked pollution have turned the region into an ecological disaster zone.
Bassey, who holds the national honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic, made the call on Monday while delivering an address at the 2026 Correspondents’ Week of the Nigerian Union of Journalists in Port Harcourt.
Akwa Ibom State is widely recognised for its abundant crude oil deposits, but beyond petroleum lies another enormous economic asset capable of transforming the state’s future — the blue economy.
Blessed with extensive coastal resources, rivers, creeks, estuaries, and marine ecosystems, the state possesses significant aquatic wealth that remains largely untapped despite its immense economic potential. Stakeholders believe that, if properly developed, the blue economy could become a major driver of industrialisation, job creation, tourism, and sustainable economic growth in the state.
The Institute of Corporate Leadership and Mentorship (ICLM) successfully hosted its 2026 Policy Evaluation and Advocacy Forum (PEAF) on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at Vision Hall, ICLM Headquarters, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, under the theme, “Beyond Oil: Redefining the Future of Nigeria’s Tourism Industry.”
The forum critically appraised tourism development in Akwa Ibom State in line with the ARISE Agenda of the current administration
Senator Ita Enang, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State, has commended the peaceful conduct of the party’s aspirants in the ongoing primaries.
Enang said party leaders had remained united in supporting candidates contesting for the House of Representatives, Senate, House of Assembly and governorship positions.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Kano Zonal Directorate, has commenced an investigation into two male suspects, Jamilu Shuaibu Waya and Usman Namadi, over a total of $461,600 (Four Hundred and Sixty-One Thousand, Six Hundred United States Dollars) allegedly undeclared to officers of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Kano/Jigawa Area Command, at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport.
The suspects were arrested on Friday, May 8, 2026, after arriving from Dubai aboard Ethiopian Airlines ET941. Although they initially declared $130,000 and $180,000, respectively, at the currency declaration desk, a subsequent physical examination by Customs officers uncovered an additional undeclared $120,000 on the first suspect, bringing his total to $250,000, and an additional $31,600 on the second suspect, bringing his total to $211,600.
One of the kidnapped teachers of Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, Michael Oyedokun, has been killed.
Oyedokun was beheaded in a new video allegedly released by bandits on Sunday.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has granted bail to former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, for ₦100 million, with one surety in like sum.
Delivering the ruling, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik held that the surety must reside in either the Maitama or Asokoro districts of Abuja and present the original Certificate of Occupancy of a landed property to be deposited at the court registry.