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Jailed Nigerian HushPuppi Caught in Another $400k Fraud Case

Hushpuppi stole and launder over$400,000 while in American prison.

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Reports reveal that another $400k fraud case has been opened against the Nigerian Dubai-based Instagram Socialite, HushPuppi, who is currently jailed in the United States.

An agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States has alleged that the popular Nigerian Instagram celebrity, Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, popularly known as Hushpuppi has received new charges in the U.S.

According to the agent, U.S. prosecutors have submitted court documents showing that Hushpuppi committed another fraud and laundered over $400k while in prison.

Investors King gathered that the documents were presented before the United States District Court of California on Wednesday, 16th March, with evidence indicting HushPuppi of committing fraud and money laundering in a U.S federal correctional facility.

Hushpuppi was said to have committed these crimes while incarcerated as the reports suggest that he ‘participated’ in the purchase and laundering of an Economic Impact Payment debit card that was fraudulently obtained from stolen data of U.S citizens and residents. The documents also revealed that the hackers use data of U.S residents to file and obtain Economic Impact Payments debit cards and proceed to sell the cards in underground marketplaces to other cybercriminals.

Economic Impact Payments are monetary support offered by the US government to residents according to the CARES Act. And only eligible residents can receive one via debit cards.

The use of the internet is quite regulated in many U.S. correctional facilities and many inmates have access to the internet. However, between January 28 and March 4, 2022, some security authorities at the federal prison where Hushpuppi is incarcerated, revealed that he was using the internet more often than usual.

Taking note of his activities on the internet, the authorities revealed that the Instagram socialite was actively buying EIP debit cards from an underground cybercriminal marketplace called StimulusCard while being recorded. Hushpuppi was said to have bought a total of 58 EIP debit cards valued at $429,800 on the site and laundered the money through one AJ.

The Instagram socialite was arrested in June 2020 in connection to the cases involving fraudulent schemes which he had pleaded guilty to at the U.S. District Court of Central District of California.

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Education

NCC Confiscates ₦23 Million Worth of Pirated Books During Bookstores Raid In Uyo

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The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) on Saturday, November 2, confiscated ₦23.1 million in pirated books from local shops, including Academic Needs and Zion Bookshop during a raid in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

The raid was by the Deputy Director of Operations, Mr Macfoy Akachukwu, representing the NCC Director General, Dr. John Asein.

Akachukwu, who stated that the raid was a significant operation to combat the rampant sale of pirated books, listed the books seized during the raid to include: Basic Civic Education by Dr Merry Ukaegbu, Spectrum New Further Mathematics by T.R. Moses and Essential Christian Religious Study for Senior Secondary Schools by Orovwuje B.O and Okolie E.U.

Other books included Macmillan Brilliant English for Junior Secondary Schools by Wale Ossianwo, New General Basic Science for Junior Secondary Schools by S. Ajayi, New Oxford Secondary English Course for Secondary Schools by Ayo Banjo and New Concept Mathematics for Senior Secondary Schools by H.N. Odogwu among others.

Major publishers affected by the raid included Evans, UPL, Lantern, Longman, TONAD, and Pearson among others.

According to Asein, the operation is important as it was part of a nationwide initiative to protect authors’ rights.

“What we have done is part of the commissions mandate to protect and promote the rights of authors and other genuine investors in the copyright book industry,” he stated.

He reaffirmed that the NCC is committed to “eliminating the sale of pirated works and to establish a robust copyright framework in Nigeria”.

Asein emphasized that authors deserve to benefit from their creative work and not run into financial losses because of piracy.

“It is our duty to ensure that authors get rewards for their creative work. I have under my watch, zero tolerance for piracy and infringement of Copyright Laws,” Asein said.

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Strike: Academic Activities Remain Grounded As NASU, FG Clash Over Half Salary Payment

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While the Federal Government and the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities (NASU) continue to engage in discussions to end the ongoing strike, academic activities in the country have remained grounded leaving students in frustration.

Investors King in an earlier report detailed that the academic bodies directed its members to commence a nationwide indefinite strike from Monday over the nonpayment of four months withheld salaries.

The leaders of the two unions announced that the strike would start on Sunday, October 27, 2024.

JAC, in a circular to all branch chairmen of NASU and SSANU in the universities and inter-university centres, with the title: ‘Latest development in respect of the withheld four (4) months salaries’, and signed by Prince Peters Adeyemi, General Secretary of NASU and Comrade Mohammed Ibrahim, SSANU President, explained that the timing of the action was for effective co-ordination and for both unions to be on the same page.

After discussions with the unions, the FG through the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation on Saturday authorized a partial payment to the bodies and urged them to shelve the strike.

Reacting to this, JAC kicked against the FG’s approval of only one month out of the four months of withheld salaries.

The union officials, including SSANU National President, Mohammed Ibrahim, stated that the one-month salary is insufficient to meet their demands.

“Yes, they paid one month out of four months. We shall be meeting to appraise the situation, but not everyone has received their pay so far,” Ibrahim said.

The unions declared that the nationwide strike would continue until all demands are met and all withheld salaries paid.

JAC revealed that over 98 percent of union members across the country have complied with the strike.

Revealing the next step, Ibrahim said, “We plan to convene soon to determine further steps, and reaffirm our stance to remain on strike until the government fully addresses the salary backlog.”

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Atiku, Sheu Sani, SERAP, Amnesty International, Others Kick As FG Arraigns Minors For Joining #EndBadGovernance Protests

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Condemnations have trailed the arraignment of some distressed minors alongside adults who protested against bad governance and hunger in Nigeria.

The Federal Government dragged the peaceful protesters of the nationwide #EndBadGovernance including 32 minors before an Abuja Federal High Court on Friday.

However, there was panic within the courtroom when some of the minors collapsed during the arraignment.

The minors were arraigned for alleged treason by participating in August’s 10 days nationwide protests against hunger and bad governance.

It was gathered that the minors, who have been held by the Nigeria Police Force since August, were deprived of adequate care while in detention.

The incident occurred as they were being transported from various police detention cells, including those from the Intelligence Response Team (IRT).

No sooner than they arrived court premises that couple of the young lads lost consciousness inside the courtroom.

Sources claimed that they fainted due to maltreatment and lack of sufficient food for the days they were detained. They further alleged that authorities are using hunger as a form of torture against the young protesters for merely exercising their constitutional rights.

Photos and videos from the courtroom depicted the distressing scene, showing some teenagers writhing on the floor while others attempted to assist them.

One lawyer was captured trying to resuscitate a protester who collapsed in the dock.

The detention of the minors and other protesters was mandated by Justice Emeka Nwite, who approved an ex-parte application from the police to keep the minors in custody for 60 days as part of their investigation into the protests, which were aimed at addressing worsening insecurity and hardship attributed to President Bola Tinubu’s policies.

Condemning their arraignment and treatment, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, lambasted the President Bola Tinubu-led federal government over the illegal detention of malnourished minors.

Reacting to videos of the collapsed minors, Atiku, the former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general elections, said that Tinubu’s wickedness could not allow him to spare children who were protesting against his “harsh and draconian” policies in the country.

Atiku in a post on X said that the horrible scene of the collapsed malnourished minors in court is reminiscent of a Nazi concentration camp, which is a reflection of the low premium Tinubu-led government places on the lives of the vulnerable, especially children.

The former Vice President noted that it is reprehensible that President Tinubu who claims to have fought for Nigeria’s democracy and had led protests now demonises those who decide to demonstrate against the effects of his harsh and draconian policies.

Similarly, Shehu Sani, a former federal lawmaker from Kaduna State, expressed deep concerns over the detention of minors involved in the #EndBadGovernance protests.

Sani in a tweet on Friday questioned the justification behind their prolonged detention, saying there is no justification for the incarceration of the poor children.

He appealed to the Federal Government to set them free.

Also expressing outrage over the development, the Socio-Economic Rights And Accountability Project (SERAP) called for the immediate and unconditional release of all detained #EndBadGovernance protesters in prison and dropping of charges against them.

In a post on X handle, SERAP demanded that President Tinubu’s administration must promptly investigate the apparent ill-treatment of #EndBadGovernance protesters in prison and prosecute those responsible.

In the same vein, Omoyele Sowore, the convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, strongly condemned President Tinubu’s government for prosecuting minors who allegedly participated in the #EndBadGovernance protests.

Sowore, a former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, criticized the government for its “shameless” treatment of these malnourished minors, who he believes deserve access to free education and healthcare, rather than being put on trial for treason.

Joining in the condemnation, Amnesty International wondered the rationale behind the prosecution of children who demanded good governance, calling for their immediate release.

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