EVENING NEWS
HEADLINES
Tinubu has put me in charge of Abia APC – Orji Kalu
Police arrest notorious cultist, robbery suspects in Kwara
Court fixes May 5 for hearing of suit seeking deregistration of ADC, Accord Party
Italy extradites Chinese hacker to US
Anthony Joshua Announces Comeback Fight Months After Deadly Car Crash
THE DETAILS
Former Abia State Governor and serving senator, Orji Kalu, said President Bola Tinubu has assigned him to coordinate the activities of the All Progressives Congress in Abia State.
Kalu, who represents Abia North Senatorial District and currently chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission, disclosed the development on Monday, linking the directive to a recent meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The former Senate Chief Whip confirmed the assignment via his official Facebook page, expressing gratitude for the responsibility entrusted to him at a time of shifting political calculations in the South-East.
He said, “I sincerely thank His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, for the confidence reposed in me and the marching order to coordinate activities in Abia State in respect of our great party, the All Progressives Congress.”
The development comes as the APC intensifies efforts to deepen its foothold in Abia and the wider South-East, regions where the party has historically struggled against entrenched opposition dominance.
The move is also seen as part of a broader strategy to unify party structures, resolve internal disputes and position credible candidates ahead of future contests.
The Kwara State Police Command has recorded a breakthrough in its crackdown on violent crime with the arrest of suspected armed robbers and cult members operating around the Amoyo axis of Ilorin.
According to a statement signed by Kwara Police Public Relations Officer, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, issued on Monday, the suspects were arrested following a report received on April 19, 2026, over an armed robbery incident at Kabba Kajola Junction.
Ejire-Adeyemi said swift intelligence-led operations led to the arrest of two suspects identified as Abdulazeez Isiaq, also known as “Pumpin,” and Rilwan Mohammed, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend another fleeing suspect.
The statement read in part,“Following a report received on 19th April, 2026 at Amoyo Division concerning an armed robbery incident at Kabba Kajola Junction, swift intelligence-driven operations led to the arrest of Abdulazeez Isiaq alias Pumpin and Rilwan Mohammed, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend another suspect currently at large.”
further revealed that the suspects allegedly assaulted victims, forcibly took them to an uncompleted building used as a hideout, and threatened to kill them before dispossessing them of valuables, including an iPhone 13, Samsung A2S, and other personal effects.
The principal suspect, Abdulazeez Isiaq, is a known criminal figure, and his arrest has significantly disrupted criminal activities in the area,” the statement added.
The Command said the suspects will be charged in court upon conclusion of the investigation, while assuring residents of continued efforts to rid the state of criminal elements and protect lives and property.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed May 5 for hearing in a suit seeking to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission to deregister the African Democratic Congress and some other political parties over alleged constitutional breaches.
Justice Peter Lifu fixed the date on Monday after granting an application by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators to amend its originating summons to include other political parties allegedly found to be in breach of relevant provisions of the law.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2025, seeks the deregistration of the ADC, Accord Party, Zenith Labour Party and Action Alliance.
Also listed as defendants are INEC and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
In a short ruling, Justice Lifu directed parties yet to respond to the amended originating summons to do so without delay, noting that the matter was time-sensitive and of public importance
The judge observed that, with party primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections, there was a need to determine the case expeditiously.
He subsequently ordered all parties to file the necessary processes before May 1 and adjourned the matter until May 5 for a definite hearing.
FOREIGN
Italy has extradited to the United States a Chinese hacker accused of spying for his country’s government during the Covid-19 pandemic, the police said on Monday.
The man was arrested at Milan’s Malpensa airport last July and is “suspected of acting for the Chinese government”, the police statement said.
He is accused of hacking US government entities, research institutes and universities involved in vaccine research in 2020 and 2021 at the height of the pandemic, the statement said.
The police did not identify the man but said he was a former head of a major technology company in Shanghai.
He is alleged, along with associates, to be behind a hacking group called “Hafnium” which was accused of penetrating tens of thousands of Microsoft Exchange email servers in 2021.
At the time, Microsoft called the group a “highly skilled and sophisticated actor”.
Italian police said the suspect was arrested on a warrant from Texas, hailing an “excellent and well-established cooperation” with the FBI as a reason for the operation’s success.
SPORTS
Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will make his ring return following a fatal car crash against unheralded Kristian Prenga in Saudi Arabia in July.
Two of Joshua’s close friends were killed in the crash in Nigeria in December, just over a week after his last fight, a fifth round knock-out of YouTube star Jake Paul.
The 36-year-old Briton has been in talks to face his great domestic rival, Tyson Fury later this year in a bout that many observers feel is at least five years overdue.
“It’s no secret I’ve taken some time to consolidate and rebuild to be ready for stepping back into the ring and this is the next step on that journey,” Joshua said in announcing the July 25 bout in Riyadh.
Shortly before the announcement, Saudi Arabia’s boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh suggested on social media that Joshua’s fight with Fury had been agreed.
“To my friends in Great Britain — it’s happening. It’s signed,” said Alalshikh, with Ring Magazine reporting that the British rivals would collide in the fourth quarter of the year.
Tinubu has put me in charge of Abia APC – Orji Kalu
Police arrest notorious cultist, robbery suspects in Kwara
Court fixes May 5 for hearing of suit seeking deregistration of ADC, Accord Party
Italy extradites Chinese hacker to US
Anthony Joshua Announces Comeback Fight Months After Deadly Car Crash
THE DETAILS
Former Abia State Governor and serving senator, Orji Kalu, said President Bola Tinubu has assigned him to coordinate the activities of the All Progressives Congress in Abia State.
Kalu, who represents Abia North Senatorial District and currently chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission, disclosed the development on Monday, linking the directive to a recent meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The former Senate Chief Whip confirmed the assignment via his official Facebook page, expressing gratitude for the responsibility entrusted to him at a time of shifting political calculations in the South-East.
He said, “I sincerely thank His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, for the confidence reposed in me and the marching order to coordinate activities in Abia State in respect of our great party, the All Progressives Congress.”
The development comes as the APC intensifies efforts to deepen its foothold in Abia and the wider South-East, regions where the party has historically struggled against entrenched opposition dominance.
The move is also seen as part of a broader strategy to unify party structures, resolve internal disputes and position credible candidates ahead of future contests.
The Kwara State Police Command has recorded a breakthrough in its crackdown on violent crime with the arrest of suspected armed robbers and cult members operating around the Amoyo axis of Ilorin.
According to a statement signed by Kwara Police Public Relations Officer, Adetoun Ejire-Adeyemi, issued on Monday, the suspects were arrested following a report received on April 19, 2026, over an armed robbery incident at Kabba Kajola Junction.
Ejire-Adeyemi said swift intelligence-led operations led to the arrest of two suspects identified as Abdulazeez Isiaq, also known as “Pumpin,” and Rilwan Mohammed, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend another fleeing suspect.
The statement read in part,“Following a report received on 19th April, 2026 at Amoyo Division concerning an armed robbery incident at Kabba Kajola Junction, swift intelligence-driven operations led to the arrest of Abdulazeez Isiaq alias Pumpin and Rilwan Mohammed, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend another suspect currently at large.”
further revealed that the suspects allegedly assaulted victims, forcibly took them to an uncompleted building used as a hideout, and threatened to kill them before dispossessing them of valuables, including an iPhone 13, Samsung A2S, and other personal effects.
The principal suspect, Abdulazeez Isiaq, is a known criminal figure, and his arrest has significantly disrupted criminal activities in the area,” the statement added.
The Command said the suspects will be charged in court upon conclusion of the investigation, while assuring residents of continued efforts to rid the state of criminal elements and protect lives and property.
The Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed May 5 for hearing in a suit seeking to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission to deregister the African Democratic Congress and some other political parties over alleged constitutional breaches.
Justice Peter Lifu fixed the date on Monday after granting an application by the Incorporated Trustees of the National Forum of Former Legislators to amend its originating summons to include other political parties allegedly found to be in breach of relevant provisions of the law.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2025, seeks the deregistration of the ADC, Accord Party, Zenith Labour Party and Action Alliance.
Also listed as defendants are INEC and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
In a short ruling, Justice Lifu directed parties yet to respond to the amended originating summons to do so without delay, noting that the matter was time-sensitive and of public importance
The judge observed that, with party primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections, there was a need to determine the case expeditiously.
He subsequently ordered all parties to file the necessary processes before May 1 and adjourned the matter until May 5 for a definite hearing.
FOREIGN
Italy has extradited to the United States a Chinese hacker accused of spying for his country’s government during the Covid-19 pandemic, the police said on Monday.
The man was arrested at Milan’s Malpensa airport last July and is “suspected of acting for the Chinese government”, the police statement said.
He is accused of hacking US government entities, research institutes and universities involved in vaccine research in 2020 and 2021 at the height of the pandemic, the statement said.
The police did not identify the man but said he was a former head of a major technology company in Shanghai.
He is alleged, along with associates, to be behind a hacking group called “Hafnium” which was accused of penetrating tens of thousands of Microsoft Exchange email servers in 2021.
At the time, Microsoft called the group a “highly skilled and sophisticated actor”.
Italian police said the suspect was arrested on a warrant from Texas, hailing an “excellent and well-established cooperation” with the FBI as a reason for the operation’s success.
SPORTS
Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will make his ring return following a fatal car crash against unheralded Kristian Prenga in Saudi Arabia in July.
Two of Joshua’s close friends were killed in the crash in Nigeria in December, just over a week after his last fight, a fifth round knock-out of YouTube star Jake Paul.
The 36-year-old Briton has been in talks to face his great domestic rival, Tyson Fury later this year in a bout that many observers feel is at least five years overdue.
“It’s no secret I’ve taken some time to consolidate and rebuild to be ready for stepping back into the ring and this is the next step on that journey,” Joshua said in announcing the July 25 bout in Riyadh.
Shortly before the announcement, Saudi Arabia’s boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh suggested on social media that Joshua’s fight with Fury had been agreed.
“To my friends in Great Britain — it’s happening. It’s signed,” said Alalshikh, with Ring Magazine reporting that the British rivals would collide in the fourth quarter of the year.