• NDLEA arrests suspected drug baroness, seals mansion, drug bunks
• FG deploys drones in HIV drugs delivery
• Sokoto police declare suspects seen in video of Deborah Samuel’s killing wanted
• 9 killed, several school children injured in Kano gas explosion
• JAMB debunks error in scoring system, says no plan to reschedule UTME

Across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, these are the five top Nigerian news stories you shouldn’t miss:

NDLEA arrests suspected drug baroness, seals mansion, drug bunks

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have arrested a suspected drug baroness, Bridget Oghenekevwe Emeka, a.k.a Mama, alleged to be the backbone of a major cartel distributing drugs in Delta and adjourning states.

The suspect, 59, was arrested on Sunday, May 15 at her mansion, where she allegedly cooks and distributes crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and other illicit substances.

A spokesperson for the anti-narcotics agency, Femi Babafemi, in a statement yesterday, said no fewer than nine of her staff and associates were arrested along with her in coordinated operations at her expansive residence and drug bunks. She uses the premises to accommodate drug users and sells illicit substances to them and others in parts of Warri, Delta.

According to Babafemi, apart from various quantities of crack cocaine, and methamphetamine, Molly and Loud were seized from her home as well as drug bunks; a pump-action gun, 15 cartridges, documents, two cars, mobile phones, drug paraphernalia, such as sodium bicarbonate and polythene wrappings were also recovered for further investigation.

FG deploys drones in HIV drugs delivery

The Federal Government yesterday said it is deploying drones to deliver antiretroviral therapy (ART) drugs in some states in order to minimise the death rate within the HIV/AIDS communities.

It further stated that despite the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic, it recorded the largest growth in HIV treatment numbers; placing nearly 300,000 people living with HIV on treatment in 2020.

The Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Dr. Gambo Aliyu, said, “The country, in her strides, is moving towards HIV epidemic control and program sustainability which is in line with global agenda and built on innovative approaches to exceed the 95:95:95 targets. We can all agree that achieving HIV epidemic control in Nigeria requires innovative thinking, good planning, and domestic resourcing for sustainability.”

Sokoto police declare suspects seen in video of Deborah Samuel’s killing wanted

The Sokoto police command says it declared wanted suspects who claimed involvement in the killing of Deborah Samuel Yakubu as seen in a viral video.

“The Sokoto state command under the able leadership of the Commissioner of Police, CP Kamaldeen Kola Okunlola fdc, has declared the suspects spotted in the viral video wanted,” Sanusi Abubakar, Sokoto police spokesperson said.

“The command is using this medium to reiterate its commitment towards apprehending the suspects. The command has already deployed all its intelligence and is on the lookout for the suspects.

“Members of the public are enjoined to cooperate with the police and report any mere identification to the command or any security outfit in their domain.”

9 killed, several school children injured in Kano gas explosion

Nine persons have, yesterday, lost their lives as a gas explosion rocked the Sabon Gari area of Kano; but the police confirmed four.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said its personnel recovered nine bodies from the scene of the incident.

Confirming the figure in a statement issued hours after the incident that occurred in the morning, NEMA’s spokesperson, Manzo Ezekiel, revealed that the Director-General of the agency, Mustapha Ahmed, was at the site of the incident and coordinated rescue operations.

JAMB debunks error in scoring system, says no plan to reschedule UTME

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has debunked reports of error in the scoring of candidates in the just concluded 2022 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

The board warned the public especially candidates of the last UTME to be wary of the activities of fraudsters who were making false claims of errors in the scoring system.

“Consequently, the unfounded rumours making the rounds are nothing but the products of the deceitful brains of the masterminds of these baseless imputations.

“This clarification became necessary following reports of a purported rescheduling of the UTME from a section of the social media citing phantom errors in the computer scoring system and a purported apology from JAMB to the effect that another UTME would be organised.

“The board wishes to state that the report is not only false, mischievous, but also misleading and crafted out of the frustration and inability of these fraudsters to dupe unsuspecting candidates owing to the series of innovative strategies the board had put in place to protect candidates,” he said.