President Muhammadu Buhari has on Monday summoned an emergency security meeting at the Presidential Villa, in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting which started at about 11.00 a.m. is attended by all service chiefs and Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris.
The meeting came up barely 48 hours after the release of three lecturers of University of Maiduguri and 10 police officers’ wives by the Boko Haram,
NAN further observed that the Minister of Interior, retired Lt. Gen. Abdulrahma Dambazau, might brief the Council on some security related matters, as Heads of para-military organisations under the ministry were seen at the venue of the meeting.
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NAN also gathered that the release of three lecturers of the University of Maiduguri and 10 police officers’ wife by the Boko Haram sect on Saturday might be part of matters to be discussed at the council.
It would be recalled that the Department of State Services (DSS) on Saturday briefed President Muhammadu Buhari on the negotiated release of the lecturers and police officers’ wives.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, who announced the release in a statement in Abuja, recalled that those released were abducted by suspected Boko Haram terrorists at Magumeri in Borno.
He said their release followed series of negotiations as directed by President Buhari and was facilitated by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
