The Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Police Command has issued a stern warning over an alleged plot by okada riders to launch attacks on task force officials operating within the Kubwa axis.

OSUNDAILY NG reports that a voice note currently circulating on social media suggests that a group of commercial motorcyclists have concluded plans to attack officials of the FCT Task Force.

It was alleged that task force officials recently carried out a clampdown on the motorcyclists, impounding over 200 motorcycles.

Reacting, the police command, in a statement issued on Thursday night by its spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, said such conduct amounts to “criminality and will be met with the full weight of the law”.

According to Josephine, the “command will not hesitate to deploy all lawful means, including arrests, prosecution, and necessary force, to deal decisively with perpetrators of public disorder”.

The statement further warned that the command possesses both the capacity and the resolve to protect public officers, safeguard lives and property, and ensure law and order within the FCT.

A high-ranking officer with Ukraine’s Security Service, SBU, was gunned down in broad daylight in the capital city of Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials and local media reports.

The officer, whose identity was not officially confirmed by the agency, was shot multiple times in a car park shortly after 09:00 local time on Thursday in the Holosiivskyi district.

Ukrainian media, however, have identified the victim as Colonel Ivan Voronych.

Chilling CCTV footage shows a man in jeans and a dark T-shirt exiting a building while carrying a plastic bag and a holdall.

As he approaches a parked car, another man, wearing dark shorts and what appears to be body armour, sprints towards him and opens fire at close range. The attacker fled the scene immediately after the shooting.

The SBU, Ukraine’s domestic intelligence and counter-intelligence agency, said it is “taking a comprehensive set of measures to clarify all the circumstances of the crime and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

The motive for the attack remains unclear, and no group or persons has claimed responsibility. Kyiv police confirmed in a statement that officers found the victim’s body with gunshot wounds and are working to identify and apprehend the suspect, saying that “measures are being taken to detain him.”

Ukrainska Pravda, citing unnamed sources, reported that the assailant used a pistol and fired five shots at the officer.

While speculation has mounted due to the nature of the killing and the target, officials have refrained from suggesting any specific leads publicly.

The killing comes amid an intensifying security environment inside Ukraine, especially as its intelligence services have played increasingly visible roles in covert operations.

The SBU has been credited with numerous sabotage missions and targeted assassinations deep inside Russian territory since the onset of Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022.

In December 2024, sources from within Ukraine’s security services told international media outlets that they were behind the killing of Russian General Igor Kirillov.

Another senior Russian military figure, General Yaroslav Moskalik, was killed in a car bomb blast in Moscow earlier this year, an incident Russia blamed on Ukrainian agents, although Kyiv has never officially claimed responsibility.

The assassination also comes on the heels of what Ukrainian officials described as one of the most intense aerial bombardments by Russia since the war began.

Just days earlier, 728 drones and 13 cruise or ballistic missiles reportedly struck multiple cities across Ukraine, prompting widespread destruction and civilian casualties.

Overnight into Thursday, further Russian missile strikes on Kyiv killed at least two people and wounded 16 others, with attacks reported in eight districts.

According to officials, Russia launched 18 missiles and over 400 drones, a clear indication of the scale and persistence of the assault on civilian infrastructure.

Meanwhile, fighting on the front line rages on. Russian forces are said to be gaining ground in the east and have reclaimed territory in the Kursk region that was previously seized by Ukrainian troops during a counter-offensive last summer.

As the war stretches into its fourth year, diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire have stagnated. Tensions between global leaders remain high, with U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly growing increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the lack of progress in peace negotiations.

Russia continues to occupy about one-fifth of Ukraine, including the Crimean Peninsula, which it annexed in 2014.

The Chairman of the South East Council of Traditional Rulers, SECTR, Eze E. C. Okeke, has expressed support for the recent suspension of the traditional ruler of Umudiawa autonomous community in Umuahia North LGA of Abia State, Eze Nnamdi Ofoegbu.

Eze Ofoegbu was suspended by the Abia State Council of Traditional Rulers for allegedly leading a parallel body of traditional rulers and for insubordination.

Reacting to the development, Eze E. C. Okeke stated that the suspended monarch had been operating a parallel South East traditional rulers’ forum which, according to him, included individuals who were not monarchs.

Eze Okeke, who alleged that the parallel group’s actions were aimed at destabilising SECTR, also noted that Eze Ofoegbu had previously been cautioned over his conduct before his eventual suspension in Abia State.

He disclosed that in September 2024, SECTR suspended all traditional ceremonies in honour of deceased Igbo leaders, including former Ohanaeze Ndigbo President Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, and Onyeka Onwenu. However, Eze Nnamdi Ofoegbu went ahead to organise a new yam festival scheduled for November 2024 in Asaba, Delta State.

He concluded by asserting that the suspension of the monarch was due to his actions and utterances, and not a case of victimisation.

However, speaking to journalists on Sunday from his palace, Eze Nnamdi Ofoegbu maintained that his group, the Ndigbo Progressive Traditional Rulers Forum, is duly registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, and alleged that the SECTR, led by Eze E. C. Okeke, is not currently registered with the CAC.

Eze Ofoegbu further claimed that his suspension in Abia State stemmed from the award he conferred upon President Bola Tinubu, through the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, in recognition of their achievements.