People seen fleeing Oxford Circus Tube station as police respond to 'incident'

Shots were reportedly fired near the Oxford Circus train station in central London on Friday.

Bystanders shared videos on social media showing people running on the street as authorities instructed anyone outdoors to find shelter. 

There have not been any reports of casualties. 

Witness Lilly Steger told the Standard, “There were screams and then everybody started running. I thought originally it was a car driving into traffic but then we heard gunshots. Everybody ran into stores or hotels.”

This story is developing. Check back for more later. 

Former President Jonathan speaks on collecting N5 billion monthly from pension fund

The immediate past President Goodluck Jonathan has denied receiving any money from the pension fund.

Jonathan said there was no iota of truth in reports that he forcefully collected N5 billion monthly from the money.

The ex-President said this through his media adviser, Ikechukwu Eze, in a statement in Abuja on Saturday.

This is in reaction to a statement credited to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who was said to have told the Senate committee that the former Pension boss, Abdurasheed Maina confided in him that an ex-President received N5 billion from the board.

Jonathan said the claim is “a blatant lie hurriedly cooked up to divert the attention of the general public from the raging ‘Mainagate’ and other embarrassing scandals.”

He added, “We believe that the story was concocted as part of the unfolding grand design (by the Buhari administration) to always dodge responsibility and blame every evil act taking place in the present dispensation on the past (Jonathan ) administration.

“In the first place, we do not believe that Malami made such a claim because he is in a position to know that it is simply not true.”

In this photo released by the Nigeria State House, Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari, speaks at the presidential palace upon his arrival from medical vacation in Abuja, Nigeria. Friday, March.10, 2017 .Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari returned to the country on Friday after a medical leave of a month and a half that raised questions about his health and some calls for his replacement, but he made clear that whatever was ailing him was not yet over. (Sunday Aghaeze/Nigeria State House via AP)

President Muhammadu Buhari says he did not know many of his appointees, including ministers, as of the time he appointed them into top government positions.

He said he only came across their names from the records which he worked with.

According to a statement on Wednesday by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, the President spoke at a state dinner organised in his honour at Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, as part of activities marking his state visit.

Buhari said his appointments were based on merit and he always considered what was best for the country in his decisions.

‘‘Some of the people holding high positions in the government, like my ministers, will tell you that I didn’t know them from Adam.

‘‘I just came across their names from the records and I worked with the records. I thank God that I have a very good team,’’ the President was quoted as saying.

Buhari also commended Governor Dave Umahi for his development strides in the state, saying ‘‘the absolute commitment of the governor to his position is very remarkable and I am very impressed.’’

The President, while expressing gratitude to God and the people of Ebonyi for recognising his modest contribution to the country, described Nigeria as a great country with incredible resources and highly talented people.

‘‘We should continue to pray to God that the elites that will be in-charge of the country in the future fear God,’’ he said.

London court jails five Nigerians for £610,000 telephone banking fraud

An Inner London Crown Court has sentenced five Nigerians to various jail terms over the theft of £610,000 from business bank accounts.

According to reports, Victor Oke, 39, of Galleons Drive, Barking, used stolen data provided by Desmond Uyiosa Abifade, 25, of Henniker Road, Stratford, to falsely impersonate company directors via telephone banking.

Once Oke gained access, he diverted funds to ‘mule’ beneficiary accounts monitored by Moses Kuye, 28, of Connaught Road, Silvertown.

Melinda Mensah-Oke, 37, also of Galleons Drive, impersonated company directors when a female voice was necessary, while Arinola Kuye, 27, also of Connaught Road, acted as the group’s money launderer.

They were caught after being spotted by fraud investigators at HSBC, who passed the case to the dedicated card and payment crime unit (DCPCU) to investigate.

The DCPCU is sponsored by the banking industry and made up of officers from the City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police Service, bank investigators and support staff from UK Finance.

Police were able to analyse when and where the calls were made to identify the phones used and from there, the perpetrators.

All five were charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation, which they pleaded not guilty to.

On Wednesday, Oke was sentenced to four years in prison, while Moses Kuye was jailed for three years and three months.

Mensah-Oke received a fourteen month suspended sentence and Abifade a two year suspended sentence.

Arinola Kuye was given a 12-month community order and instructed to complete 50 hours of unpaid work.

DC Dave Cass, who investigated the case for the DCPCU said: “This was a concerted effort to commit fraud against two companies and profit from crime.

“The police take fraud very seriously and these sentences should send a message to fraudsters that you will be caught and punished.”

All losses were refunded to the genuine business account holders.

What is character?

Character is who you are behind closed doors when there is nobody else around you. This is who you really are. Integrity is who you are in front of people. People will see who you are before they hear who you are. On a daily basis you need to challenge your character. If you do not challenge your character your integrity will never grow. 

When you challenge your character, judge yourself. You need to qualify yourself to produce a victorious future, otherwise you will stay in the same position, the same state of mediocrity, the same hole that you have dug and you can't complain about it. You can't blame anyone, you can't point the finger. 

You simply need to stop making excuses and get out of that state of mediocrity and start challenging your character.

The first place I would start is make a list of all the areas in your life that you need to tighten up, such as yourattitude , your thought process, organizing your home, your garage, your vehicles, and keeping them in order. Start doing things on a daily basis that generate self respect and character. This will automatically qualify you to be around people who celebrate the type of person you can become, instead of tolerating the person you are.

I love you guys very much. Remember, the ones who love you the most are the ones who are willing to risk the chance of losing you to tell you the truth or to push you to another level. 

VERY SAD!!! MISSING 26 YEAR OLD BRITISH TOURIST ADEMOLA OWOLANA FOUND DEAD

 

The body found at the Metra Electric Kensington Rail Yard in Chicago's West Pullman neighborhood is missing British tourist Ademola Owolana, a family spokesperson confirmed.

It's not clear how the body of Owolana, 26, ended up on top of a retired Metra Electric rail car. The man from London came to Chicago with his mother to visit relatives.

Crisis responder Andrew Holmes spent time tonight consoling Owolana's grieving mother.

"I really, really didn't want to turn out this way," Holmes said. "She didn't want to take her son back home like this."

Owolana was last seen early Saturday morning leaving a club in West Pullman after a night of drinking. The family said he took off on foot when a relative wouldn't give up the car keys.

His loved ones had been on a desperate search ever since. That search ended Tuesday afternoon when his body was found in the Kensington Rail Yard, not far away from where he disappeared.

"We have to leave that up to the detectives and the medical examiners to determine what, when and how long he's been there and how it exactly happened," Holmes said.

Investigators are ruling out foul play, but many questions remain. Police hope to get some answers from surveillance cameras in the area.

A cause of death has not been determined.

Bleaching?? Instagram followers shred Ice Prince Apart For Having Black Knuckles

Ice Prince followers are disappointed to see the Oleku Rapper black knuckles. 

His girlfriend steps in to fight for her boo,  making the whole brouhaha matter worst... 

'Brother is not bleaching,  He is Tonning' lol