- FCT High Court adjourns alleged ₦300m gold theft case to January 19–20, 2026.
- Defendants accused of stealing gold jewellery from Abuja home deny wrongdoing.
- Justice Nwosu-Iheme refuses request to step down from the case.
- Lagos court sentences eight phone snatchers to six months each after guilty plea.
The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Wuse Zone has adjourned to January 19 and 20, 2026, the ongoing trial involving the alleged theft of gold jewellery valued at ₦300 million. The case features defendants Rukhayat Usman Abbeyson, Lauretu Ahmed, and Sagir Ahmed, with the Commissioner of Police listed as the complainant.
Justice Nwosu-Iheme, who presided over the proceedings, said the court would take the matter for a definite hearing on the new dates and insisted that all parties must be fully ready.
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During last Thursday’s sitting, C.G. Okafor, who held brief for Adama Musa, informed the court that the lead counsel had prepared a witness but was unable to attend due to illness. Senior Advocate of Nigeria Ishaka Mudi Dikko led the defence team. The application for an adjournment was not opposed, and the court granted the request.
According to the charge sheet, the defendants allegedly conspired to steal the jewellery belonging to Hajia Halima Suleiman on March 23, 2024, at her home located at 26A Etang Obuli Crescent, Jabi, Abuja. Abbeyson, who reportedly served as a personal assistant to the complainant, is accused of being the key figure behind the theft due to her access to the safe’s combination code.
Exhibits listed before the court include witness statements, the defendants’ statements, audio recordings, bank statements from three commercial banks, chat printouts, purchase receipts, and photographs of the stolen items and the safe.
The defendants maintain that they are innocent and claim they are being falsely implicated. They had previously applied for Justice Nwosu-Iheme to recuse herself from the matter, but the judge rejected the request after ruling that there was no evidence of bias.
In a separate case in Lagos, eight men arrested for snatching mobile phones on the Mile 2 pedestrian bridge have been sentenced to six months’ imprisonment each. The arrests were confirmed by Tokunbo Wahab, Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, who said operatives of the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LAGESC) caught them during a morning operation.
The convicts; Anthony Osinachi (21), Victor Onuoha (45), Rowland Ede (25), Daniel Chisom (24), Emmanuel Chukwu (35), Ogbonnaya Uchechi (18), Godday Eke (28), and Benjamin G. (30) all pleaded guilty when arraigned before the Bolade Magistrate Court in Oshodi.
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Wahab applauded the rapid response of LAGESC officers and encouraged Lagos residents to remain alert and report suspicious activities. He said the jail sentences align with ongoing efforts by the state government to curb crime, dismantle criminal hideouts, and maintain order across Lagos.
Recent enforcement operations by state authorities have also targeted members of a “one-chance” syndicate operating around the Ijora Bridge and illegal structures used as criminal havens along the Apapa and Ijora corridors.
