Five Chinese nationals were detained at Ndito-Eka-Iba village in Akwa Ibom State’s Ibeno Local Government Area by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) agents attached to the Uyo Zonal Command for alleged illicit mining.
Dele Oyewale, the EFCC’s spokesperson, announced this in a statement in Uyo, the state capital, on Sunday.
He stated that the commission’s Special Task Force apprehended the suspects on August 29 and September 10, 2024, while mining a mineral presumed to be ilmenite, a titanium-iron oxide, in response to an intelligence report.
According to Oyewale, the suspects—Zhon Qinping, Li Yi, Xie Bin, Chen Zhou, and Chen Zeng—will face charges in court once the investigations are completed.
“Operatives of the Uyo Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC have arrested five suspected illegal Chinese miners at Ndito-Eka-Iba village, in Ibeno Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State.
“The five alleged illegal miners were arrested by the Special Task Force on Illegal Mining at the commission’s zonal office in Uyo, following credible intelligence on the illegal activities of foreign mining companies within Eket and Ibeno Local Government Areas of Akwa Ibom State.
“They were all arrested at an illegal mining site of a mineral suspected to be ilmenite, a titanium-iron oxide mineral,” the statement read.
![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")
