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Nigerian Pilot Faces 5-yr Jail Term In US Over False Declaration On Certificate

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A 36-year-old Nigerian pilot, Olukayode Ojo, now stands on the brink of a potential five-year prison sentence in Texas, after being convicted of deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in a desperate bid to secure his pilot’s certification.

U.S. District Judge Jodi Dishman ordered Ojo to remain in custody following the guilty verdict, delivered on August 16, 2024. The weight of his actions bears down on him as U.S. Attorney Robert Troester confirmed the conviction, uncovering a narrative on the FAA’s official website: Ojo had sought a medical certificate critical for flying commercial passenger aircraft, yet his path was marred by falsehoods.

On June 4, 2024, a federal jury delivered a two-count indictment against Ojo, charging him with making false statements, and just months later, they found him guilty on both counts. The investigation, driven by the Transportation Security Administration—Investigations, saw Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jackson Eldridge and Matt Dillon unveil the shocking truth behind Ojo’s façade.

The trial laid bare Ojo’s troubling history; an FAA-certified commercial pilot, he had previously pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor theft charges in February 2023 for stealing passenger luggage at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. In an attempt to cover his tracks, Ojo submitted false statements to the FAA during his applications for an FAA First Class Medical Certificate in March 2023 and March 2024, aiming to hide his checkered past.

With a formidable sentence looming—up to five years in federal prison for each count and possible fines reaching $250,000—Ojo’s future hangs in the balance, with his sentencing date yet to be announced.

 

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The reason why the EFCC rejected the method by which Yahaya Bello reported to the commission.

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“Upon realising that Bello came with the governor and some dignitaries, the Executive Chairman directed that no official should attend to him.

“His manner of coming to EFCC was a breach of our protocol. No Nigerian, no matter how highly placed, is expected to come for an invitation in a convoy of vehicles and with a sitting governor.

“To the EFCC, he came with grandeur which is contrary to our procedures.

“There are stages of documentation which Bello skipped because he was with the governor who has immunity.

“The EFCC also did not invite the governor. So, what was the basis for accompanying Bello to our headquarters in Abuja?

“We have not been comfortable with the roles of the governor in this case.

“After fulfilling all procedures of documentation, Bello was expected to come with his lawyer(s) and not a governor or Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs).

“We cannot be intimidated or subject our system to political pollution.

“This made the Executive Chairman of EFCC to direct that no official should attend to Bello. He must undergo due process like every invitee.

“The commission was unhappy with the pre-emptive propaganda in the media by Bello’s team which had created false impressions.

“There was a narration that the ex-governor was already in EFCC’s custody.” A source told The Nation.

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“We must fear a second Chernobyl”

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On the set of French news channel LCI, Sergei Zhirnov, former member of the KGG, commented on the recent statements by the head of NATO against Russia.

NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, supports the use of long-range weapons on Russian territory, which has provoked a virulent reaction from the Kremlin.

But for Sergei Jirnov, consultant for LCI:

“Stoltenberg has a cool head, he says, well, the Russians are a nuclear power, fine, but if we tremble every time there is a madman in the Duma or the Kremlin who pronounces the word nuclear, there’s no point in going out, getting up in the morning, because for two and a half years, they having been spending their time scaring us.”

And Jirnov continues: “the problem is that they’re not very careful with nuclear power. That means that they can create a second Chernobyl and that’s the problem. There are a certain number of specialists who believe that the Russian nuclear arsenal does not exist, and that it’s in a pitiful state”.

(MH with AmBar/Source: LCI/Photo: Yves Alarie/Unsplash)

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400,000 displaced as Nigerian floods worsen

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Aerial footage reveals the vast scale of destruction, with large parts of Borno state submerged. Floods have forced thousands into displacement camps, compounding the region’s existing humanitarian crisis caused by ongoing armed conflict.

Earlier this month, 30 people died after a dam collapse, and more floods are expected following water releases from Cameroon. In Maiduguri, the state capital, 15% of the city remains underwater.

Aid agencies warn that the situation is worsening, especially for those already displaced by violence.

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