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Mutallab’s Religious Zeal Deepened In London- Friend
Umar Farouq AbdulMutallab, the 23-year-old Nigerian national who allegedly attempted to bomb a U.S. airliner over Michigan Christmas day, became more devout about his Muslim faith while attending university in London, according to a former friend.
“In London he isolated himself from some of his former friends,” Kwesi Brako told CNN. “He became much more serious about his religion.”
Brako, a Christian, was in the same year as AbdulMutallab at the English boarding school they attended in the western African nation of Togo and said they were close friends. In the fall of 2005, he moved to England at the same time as AbdulMutallab to start university. But the two friends, who attended different schools, lost touch while in London.
AbdulMutallab became increasingly involved in the Islamic Society of University College London (UCL), one of Britain’s premier universities quickly becoming its vice president and threw all his energies into this new role, Brako said. Brako kept up with AbdulMutallab through mutual friends in the British capital. In June 2006, AbdulMutallab became president of the UCL Islamic Society, CNN learned.
“He started wearing traditional Muslim robes with trousers rolled up around the ankles,” said Brako, “Even in the winter he wore sandals.”
In Britain, this style of dress is often associated with Muslims espousing a hardline-fundamentalist form of Islam. At high school in Togo, Brako recalls that AbdulMutallab usually wore jeans and a T-shirt.
AbdulMutallab never bragged about his family’s wealth which stood out even among the other well-to-do families who sent their children there. “He was very humble,” Brako recalled.
AbdulMutallab was very athletic and loved playing basketball and soccer, according to Brako.
“Umar was sociable,” Brako said, “but it depended on whether he was in the mood for talking.”
Asked about AbdulMutallab’s blog references about being lonely, Brako said that he would not have thought his friend was lonely at boarding school where he said friends formed a tight-knit community.
At high school, AbdulMutallab already stood out for his strong religious views, praying five times a day, Brako recalled.
“We nicknamed him the Pope,” Brako said, “because he was so religious.”
At first AbdulMutallab did not like the nickname, but in time he came to accept it, said Brako.
Another nickname given to AbdulMutallab was “Alpha”, a reference to the phrase “the Alpha and the Omega” in the Bible.
“He was the guy that never broke the rules,” Brako recalled. “We all looked to him as our moral compass.”
AbdulMutallab was a very cheerful person, said Brako, who did not remember him being angry.
He, however, was troubled by the American invasion of Iraq in 2003.
“Umar’s view was that innocent people were suffering through no fault of their own,” Brako said.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has cautioned parents to closely monitor their children’s craving for cookies and gummies, warning that some of the products may contain illicit substances being smuggled into the country.
In a statement posted yesterday, NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said recent seizures by the agency’s officers had revealed attempts by criminal elements to introduce prohibited substances under the guise of everyday snacks.
“As parents, if your kids and young ones always crave for cookies and gummies, you may have to pay a little more attention. There may be more to it than ordinary cookies and gummies,” Babafemi wrote, sharing images of seized packages.
The photos showed colourful pouches of “Cookies Delta 8 Gummies” in flavours such as Hawaiian Rain Pineapple Guava and Thai Mango, labelled as vegan and hemp-derived, alongside the actual gummy products.
The warning comes amid a major interception by the Nigeria Customs Service at the Tin Can Island Port in Lagos.
Officers seized two 40-foot containers containing large quantities of cannabis-infused products concealed among legitimate imports such as used vehicles, generators, batteries and fabrics.
The consignment included thousands of Delta-8 cannabis pre-roll cookies, packs of cannabis-infused gummies and other cannabis-infused cookies, with a combined estimated street value of about ?373.8m.
The items were subsequently handed over to the NDLEA.
NDLEA officials described the products, which originated from the United States and were packaged to resemble ordinary vegan snacks with appealing flavours, as an emerging public health threat.
They noted that the attractive packaging could appeal especially to children, students and young people, raising the risk of accidental consumption of concentrated cannabis.
The Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA) has announced plans to partner with the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) to strengthen efforts at combating illegal waste dumping and improving environmental sanitation across the state.
The partnership was unveiled during a meeting between officials of RIWAMA and the leadership of the Rivers State chapter of the PCRC in Port Harcourt, recently, where both organisations pledged to work together to restore the Garden City status of the state capital.
In his speech, the Supervisor of Market and Community Sanitation in RIWAMA, Mr. Omereji Ukoha, said the collaboration was in line with the vision of the agency’s Managing Director, Dr. Ibimina Wokoma, and the Board Chairman, Dr. Samuel Nwanosike, to promote a cleaner and healthier environment.
Ukoha described the PCRC as a strategic grassroots partner capable of mobilising communities and driving behavioural change through sustained public enlightenment on proper waste disposal.
He expressed concern over the increasing rate of indiscriminate refuse dumping in parts of Port Harcourt, particularly in New GRA, where blocked drainage channels and illegal shanties have continued to contribute to flooding and environmental degradation.
According to him, the agency is determined to intensify enforcement against environmental offenders, warning that unregistered cart pushers and residents who patronise them would be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of the RIWAMA Act, 2014.
The RIWAMA official urged residents to embrace proper waste disposal practices and patronise only government-approved waste operators in order to safeguard public health and protect the environment.
Responding, the Chairman of the Police Community Relations Committee in Rivers State, Dr. Voke Emore, commended RIWAMA for seeking collaboration with the committee in addressing environmental challenges confronting the state.
Emore said the PCRC would deploy its community-based structures across the state to support public sensitisation and encourage residents to comply with environmental sanitation regulations.
He also called on local government councils to play more active roles in waste management, noting that they collect sanitation levies and should complement the efforts of the state government in maintaining a clean environment.
The PCRC chairman described indiscriminate refuse disposal as a serious environmental and public health concern, stressing that sustained collaboration among government agencies, community leaders and residents remained critical to achieving lasting sanitation goals.
Both organisations expressed optimism that the partnership would promote cleaner communities, reduce environmental hazards and strengthen public participation in efforts to ensure a healthier and more sustainable environment for the people of Rivers State.
King Onunwor
The Rivers State Police Command has arrested five suspected members of a kidnapping syndicate allegedly terrorising communities in Oyigbo Local Government Area of the State.
The State Police Command disclosed this in a statement by its Public Relations Officer, ASP Blessing Agabe, in Port Harcourt, recently.
The suspects were arrested during a coordinated operation at Oyigbo, following directives by the Commissioner of Police, Rivers State Command, CP Olugbenga Adewole Adepoju.
Those arrested were Ezekiel Emmanuel, 44, from Benue State; Chukwuma Mbanefor, 51, from Anambra State; Nicholas Diala, 65, from Imo State; Ndubuisi Uwakwe, 49, from Abia State; and Ifeanyi Nwakwo, 51, from Imo State.
The Command said the arrest represented another significant operational success in its ongoing efforts to dismantle criminal networks operating in the State.
According to the Police, preliminary investigation indicated that the suspects were allegedly involved in kidnapping operations within Rivers State.
The suspects, during interrogation, allegedly confessed to their involvement in kidnapping and further admitted participating in several operations carried out in Kom-Kom, Railway, Obeama and Afam communities.
The Command said investigation was ongoing, with efforts intensified to identify and apprehend other members of the suspected syndicate who may be connected with the criminal activities.
The Police boss said the operation reflected the implementation of operational directives and the intelligence-driven policing strategy of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, psc, NPM.
Adepoju reaffirmed the Command’s determination to sustain aggressive intelligence-led operations against kidnapping, cultism, armed robbery and other violent crimes across Rivers State.
He warned kidnappers and other criminal elements operating in the State that there would be no safe haven for them, stressing that the Command would relentlessly pursue, arrest and ensure that those found culpable were brought to justice.
The Commissioner further assured residents of the Command’s commitment to protecting lives and property, urging members of the public to remain vigilant and cooperate with security agencies in the fight against crime.
He appealed to residents to provide the Police with credible and timely information capable of assisting security operatives in preventing criminal activities and apprehending suspected criminals.
The Command urged members of the public who may have useful information on the activities of the suspected kidnapping syndicate or other criminal elements to contact the Police through its emergency lines, assuring that such information would assist ongoing investigations.
King Onunwor