Via Jalals
Voodoo rituals used to trick Nigerian women into prostitution in Europe.
EXCLUSIVE -'He cut my pubic hair and fingernails as sacrifice to the GODS': Nigeria's black magic voodoo priests make women tricked into sex work eat SNAKES to stop them escaping
- MailOnline witnessed oath-taking ritual for the ancient slave god Ayelala
- Voodoo priests make women to swear to Ayelala to 'keep them obedient'
- The women offer clippings from their armpit and pubic hair as 'offerings'
- Gangs take thousands a year to Europe and force them into prostitution
- As many as 30,000 have been forced into sex slavery in last two decades
Perched on a throne adorned with cattle horns, the voodoo priest warns the housewife knelt in front of him of the deadly consequences of defying his powers.
'If you cheat on your husband, you will suffer for it, both you and the man you cheat with,' he says, wagging a gnarled finger. 'Defy the shrine and it will come and kill you.'
Just in case she has any doubts, High Priest Godspower Ojoduma shows her an photo album full of corpses, their limbs twisted and stomachs grotesquely bloated.
'You see them?' he says. 'That one was a witch, that one a thief, that one a liar. All sinners. All dead.'
This bloodthirsty ceremony, witnessed by MailOnline, is an oath-taking ritual for the ancient slave god Ayelala, one of the most feared of all Nigeria's voodoo or 'ju-ju' deities.
For hundreds of years, her potent magic has been used to enforce everything from debt collection and land disputes through to marital infidelity.
But in the 21st century, she has acquired a chilling new role in a very modern social problem - the trafficking of sex slaves to Britain and Europe.
As the ruthless trade has escalated in the past decade, Nigerian trafficking gangs have begun evoking Ayelala's powers to terrify local women into doing their bidding.
The gangs bring thousands of young Nigerians into Europe every year, luring them promises of jobs in shops or hair salons, then forcing them into prostitution when they arrive.
To ensure they do not run away, they make them swear oaths to Ayelala before they leave Nigeria, often forcing them to provide clippings from their pubic hair as an 'offering'.
Such is the fear that voodoo inspires that many of the victims prefer to remain in sex slavery rather than disobey.
To see the sex trade's sinister alliance with black magic first hand, MailOnline travelled to poverty-stricken Benin City in southern Nigeria, home to an ancient African kingdom where voodoo priests are still widely revered.
West Africa was once also the major market for transatlantic slaves and today, in a chilling echo of that role, Benin City has become the main hub for trafficking African prostitutes to the streets of London, Rome and Paris.
Such is the scale of the problem that local anti-trafficking charities believe that most young women will be approached at some point by a trafficker.
While most end up in Italy, because of its proximity to the Mediterranean smuggling routes, hundreds also find their way every year to Britain - home to Europe's largest Nigerian diaspora.
At Mr Ojoduma's temple in Benin City last week, MailOnline watched him perform a fidelity ritual on a housewife whose husband had taken her there on suspicion of having an affair.
Despite the gory threats he issued, Mr Ojoduma insists that Ayelala's oaths are never used for evil purposes.
But Osas Omaghomi, 27, told of how she was lured to Italy by a Benin City 'madam' who paid the €1,000 fee for a people-smuggler to take her across the Sahara and the Mediterranean.
Before she went, however, the madam took her to a shrine dedicated to 'Shango', a voodoo Thunder God.
'Before I went on the journey I was taken to a shrine with three other women,' Osas said.
'A lady trafficker made us cut clippings from our fingernails and hair and put them on top of the shrine, and we lay down in front of it.
'We were also made to drink a glass of schnapps and rub white powder in our faces, so that nothing bad would happen to us before we reached Italy.
'Then we had to swear at the shrine before Shango. We were told that if we didn't pay back the money we owed the madam, Shango would come and kill us by sickness.'
Osas travelled across the Sahara to Libya and then by boat to Sicily, where she spent a month in a refugee camp before henchmen of the trafficking gang smuggled her out.
They took her to the northern city of San Torino, where she said the madam had promised her a job in a shop. Instead, she was handed skimpy clothing to wear and ordered to work in a brothel.
'When I arrived in Torino they told me to buy body cream to freshen up and look good and made me wear a short skirt,' she said.
'Then they took me to what looked like a hotel and I saw other women dressed in little clothing. It was only then that I realised I was there for prostitution. I was forced to sleep with a man twice, and felt very, very bad, so I ran away.
'I was terrified that Shango would come and get me, but I met a local pastor who reassured me and brought me home.'
Joan, a Nigerian woman who was trafficked at 17 and deported from Italy at 22, told of her ritual at the hands of a ju-ju priest.
'He cut off my hair, my armpit, my private parts, my nose...then he took my picture,' she said.
Another woman anonymously revealed how she was tricked into sex slavery.
'Only when I got to Europe, the madam introduced me to prostitution. I had to work for her until I had paid her back,' she said
Nigeria's National Agency for the Prevention of Trafficking in People (NAPTIP) claims that many curses used for sex trafficking in Benin City are done in Ayelala's name.
Shango is another one of hundreds of deities found in Benin City, which is home to hundreds of voodoo shrines, most of them in makeshift temples in the city's shantytown sprawl.
Traditionally, they have been used for benign purposes such as healing and resolving domestic disputes. But because of their all-seeing reputation, their powers are also now sought by traffickers seeking to control people from a distance.
Voodoo influence has already surfaced in a number of reported trafficking cases in Britain, including one in 2013 where a girl from Benin City ended up in a brothel in Birmingham. Before her journey, she was bathed in goat's blood, and was warned that if she ever spoke of the ritual, a thunderbolt would strike her dead wherever she was in the world.
In another case in Cardiff in 2014, Lizzy Idahosa, 26, was jailed for eight years after being found guilty of running a brothel ring where Nigerian women had eaten snails and snakes in pre-trafficking rituals.
While no single deity dominates the trafficking trade, locals in Benin City and NAPTIP itself frequently cite Ayelala, whose red-coated followers are regarded with particular fear.
In a demonstration of how traditional beliefs blend with Christianity here, Ayelala devotees wear scarlet gowns decorated with white Christian crucifixes, and hold their ceremonies in a temple complete with church-style pews. But that is where the similarities end.
Outside Mr Ojoduma's temple, goats and chickens are kept ready for sacrifice in a slaughter room at the back of the priest's throne, while a sign bans menstruating women from entering.
The temples' front wall, meanwhile, is decorated with hundreds more photographs of victims of Ayelala's wrath - from alleged 'witches' and 'wizards' through fraudsters, adulterers and car thieves.
Such is the dread she inspires that even the sight of an Ayelala hat or cloak is enough to frighten people.
'There is one old woman who regularly right down the middle of the main road through town with an Ayelala hat on,' said one Benin City resident. 'Normally she would get run over, but all the cars choose to drive round her instead.'
Ten years ago, when the local market was looted after accidentally being set ablaze, a local Ayelala priest also decreed that anyone who has stolen goods should return them immediately. Overnight, large numbers of missing items returned.
Mr Ojoduma holds court along with his wife most mornings, sat beneath a gallery of framed certificates declaring him to be both a Justice of the Peace and a member of the Nigeria chapter of the 'World Successful Herbal and Medical Practitioners'.
He claims to have recently cured a Nigerian woman from London who had come to him with sickness.
Bizarrely, those who take oaths before him must bring a 'communion' to drink in the form of a bottle of strong liquor, either Johnnie Walker whisky or Seamen's Schnapps, a popular local spirit.
Asked about Ayelala's role in trafficking, he added: 'Sometimes people do come and ask, but I always turn them down. There are plenty who bring Ayelala's name into disrepute, but I have nothing to do with them.
Sister Bibiania Emenaha runs a local Catholic order that looks after trafficked women who have been returned to Benin City.
She said that frequently, women went to Europe knowing full well that they would be involved in prostitution, but that the voodoo rituals were still used to ensure that they repaid their debts to the traffickers.
A trafficker who paid €1,000 (£900) for a woman to be smuggled to Europe could often expect up to €30,000 (£27,000) in repayment.
'The women are afraid not only for themselves, but for their families and friends,' she said. 'They think that if they disobey what they swore in front of that juju, no matter whether it is Shango or Ayelala or another, it will start manifesting itself.'
'The older people here will tell you that prostitution is an abomination in their culture, but unfortunately, every family struggles to send their daughters abroad to work. Most are poor and are interested only in the money, not how they earn it.'
Last month at the UN annual summit in New York, Theresa May called for greater international efforts to fight sex slavery. She has also announced that £35m from the UK aid budget would be spent on tackling the trade, with £5m earmarked for Nigeria.
According to figures from the National Crime Agency, some 244 of the 2,340 possible trafficking victims by British officials in 2014 were from Nigeria - a 31 per cent increase on the previous year.
But Kevin Hyland, a former head of the Met Police's Human Trafficking Unit, who is now Britain's independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, said the true figure could be much higher than that.
Mr Hyland told the MailOnline: 'Sadly, there is a now cultural acceptance in places like Benin City and Edo State that a daughter will be trafficked to Europe to earn money.
'We think there could be anything up to 1,000 women being trafficked into the UK every year now, some ending up in prostitution, others in forced labour, and I put that down partly to the impunity the trade has had.
'We need to realise that what happens in Nigeria has an impact in Britain, otherwise we'll just be picking up the pieces.'
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I supported Arsenal because of Kanu
Ahmed Musa reveals that he supported Arsenal while growing up because of Kanu Nwankwo.
The Nigeria international who is Leicester City record signing insists that the influence the Gunners legend was a big part of his decision to support the Emirates Stadium outfit and also to join the Foxes from CSKA Moscow.
“I grew up as an Arsenal fan, all because of Nwankwo Kanu,” Musa told The Guardian.
“Kanu is like a role model for me. I got to know him when I started playing in the national team. He’s like a hero in Nigeria.
“We always have contact with each other and I spoke to him before I came to Leicester. I was in Russia and he called me, because he always advises me what to do.
“He told me that I would enjoy it in the Premier League and England, that it was a nice place.”
Musa, despite his limited time in the Foxes’ squad this season has no problems with Claudio Ranieri’s decision, insisting he needs time to adapt to the intensity of English football while hoping to race with teammate, Jamie Vardy someday.
“We [Musa and Vardy] haven’t tried yet so I can’t say now who is the quickest. But I tell you this – we’re going to have a race one day,” he continued.
“My friends called me Cristiano Ronaldo because I was playing on the wing and they thought I had a little bit of speed like him.
“The Premier League is much faster than Russia – there is so much running here – but I think within a few games I will be able to adapt.
“Whenever the manager decides, I’ll be ready to play and give 100%.”
Leicester City face Southampton in Sunday’s English topflight encounter and the 23-year-old would be hoping to get a nod to play.
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Nigeria sues over $12B in 'illegal' oil exports
LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria is suing several leading oil companies for $12.7 billion of crude oil that allegedly was exported illegally to the United States between 2011 and 2014, officials said Tuesday.
The Federal High Court in Lagos begins hearings next week in cases filed against Nigerian subsidiaries of U.S. multinational Chevron, British-Dutch Shell, Italian ENI's Agip, France's Total and Brasoil of Brazilian Petrobas, according to the court register.
Chevron would not comment since the issue "is the subject of ongoing litigation," said a spokeswoman at the company's Houston headquarters, Isabel Ordonez. Other companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Nigeria was Africa's largest oil producer until militant attacks cut production and Angola overtook it in March.
The cases could provoke new anger against oil companies already accused of polluting farmland and fishing grounds. Local frustration has contributed to an armed movement in the oil-producing Niger Delta, where militants are demanding the multinationals pull out.
Officials familiar with the cases said Nigeria's government alleges that the companies did not declare more than 57 million barrels of crude oil shipments. That was deduced from audits of declared exports and what was unloaded in the United States.
Some shiploads registered less when they left Nigeria and more on reaching the United States, while some entire shiploads were undeclared in Nigeria, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the cases still are in court.
The United States was the biggest importer of Nigerian oil until it began exploiting its own shale oil reserves, though Nigerian exports to the U.S. have increased six-fold this year, according to OPEC.
Michael Kanko confirmed that his U.S.-based ImportGenius database was used by attorneys to confirm declarations made to U.S. customs by shippers and importers.
Law professor Fabian Ajogwu is representing the Nigerian government in the case against Chevron, which comes up first on Sept. 30.
Prostitutes as young as 16 in Ibiza who were beaten with brooms and sticks if they didn't bring in €1,000 a day are freed by police
- Victims were sent to exclusive districts of Ibiza during the party season
- The 21 women from Nigeria were being forced to work 14 hour days
- Seventeen of them were sharing an apartment with four to a single bed
- Police have arrested 24 after women were offered fake jobs to migrate
Prostitutes as young as 16 who were taken to Ibiza for the tourist sex trade then beaten with brooms and sticks if they didn't bring in €1,000 a day have been rescued by police.
The victims, who were lured to the Spanish mainland with fake promises of jobs, were forced to work 14 hours a day.
One of the women, police have revealed, was just 16 years of age.
All 21 are Nigerian and were working in the exclusive districts of Ibiza.
A major operation carried out by the Spanish police in association with the Office of Criminal Investigation in Germany and Europol has led to the arrest of 24 suspects.
'The network captured very young victims among the lower classes of the major Nigerian cities, deceiving them with false job offers in Spain.
'Once in our country, they were forced into prostitution in marathon days, being beaten if they did not earn the money demanded by the gang,' said a police spokesman.
Investigators said Ibiza was chosen for the summer because of the high influx of tourists, with the gang totalling controlling the streets of the exclusive areas.
They were kept in one apartment and only allowed out occasionally to buy food or to keep an appointment with a client.
'If they didn't earn 1,000 euros a day, they would be forced to kneel for hours and beaten with sticks and brooms,' said the spokesman.
Police found that 17 women were forced to share one apartment of just 30 square metres, with three to four girls sleeping in one single bed.
The vulnerable women were given employment offers 'too good to refuse' in view of their poor circumstances but once captured, were unable to escape.
They were subjected to voodoo rituals and sworn to loyalty contracts under the threat of family members being killed.
The women were smuggled into Europe on boats and planes and were only told their job offer was false when they arrived in Spain.
They were then told they would have to pay up to 50,000 pounds to be freed and could do so through prostitution.
Those arrested included two women said to be the ringleaders who had 'years of experience' in recruiting vulnerable girls.
Police said they took elaborate steps to avoid detection, often moving the women from house to house.
One of the gang was arrested in Germany where he had tried to hide and five others were found to be members of the 1960s cult called 'Supreme Eiye Confraternity'.
The money earned from prostitution was sent to Nigeria via Madrid where a bar was used as the front.
Seven properties were raided in Spain and Germany and 20 bank accounts blocked.
Oklahoma Mom & Daughter Arrested For Incestuous Marriage
Patricia Spann also married her son — eight years earlier!
An Oklahoma mother and daughter were arrested this week after it was discovered that they had an incestuous marriage, RadarOnline.com has learned.
According to reports, Patricia Ann Spann, 43, and daughter Misty Velvet Dawn Spann, 25, tied the knot in March 2016 in Comanche County.
In a shocking twist, it was also revealed that Patricia had previously married one of her sons, Jody Calvin Spann, back in 2008.
In 2010, Jody annulled the marriage, citing “incest.”
Authorities became aware of Patricia’s marriage to Misty following a child welfare investigation of their Duncan home in August.
The 43-year-old told investigators that she “hit it off” with her daughter after they reunited two years ago, blaming their decision to get married on the hope of adopting a child together, KSOW reports.
Patricia insisted that she did not have a sexual relationship with her son, explaining that they were married to prevent him from being deployed to the military.
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“I think she’s worthless, she put my sister into this. She forced my sister into this, there’s a lot of people that know it,” Misty and Jody’s brother, Cody Spann, told KSWO. “For you to want to put your own daughter through this, what kind of person are you? If that’s what you want that’s on you, but none of us kids want that, and now you got my sister behind bars because of your choices, why don’t you let that sit on you as a mom.”
Patricia and Misty pleaded not guilty to the crime. If convicted, they face up to ten years behind bars.
Video: US woman takes revenge on her boyfriend by torching his car - but gets the wrong vehicle
- Carmen Chamblee, 19, was arrested Saturday morning near Clearwater
- She is accused of intentionally setting a car on fire earlier this month
- Said she thought Honda belonged to her ex boyfriend, according to police
- But the car's owner said he has no idea who she is and has never seen her
A Florida woman set fire to a car thinking it belonged to her ex boyfriend but got the wrong vehicle, authorities believe.
Carmen Chamblee, 19, was arrested Saturday morning near Clearwater and charged with second-degree arson.
She is accused of intentionally setting a Honda on fire earlier this month, ABC Action News reported.
Chamblee said she believed the vehicle belong to her ex boyfriend, according to the police. But the owner of the Honda, Thomas Jennings, said he has never seen her before and has no idea who she is.
A security camera caught footage of a woman stirring up a blaze at the back of the Honda.
Police believe Chamblee is the woman on the video.
Investigators found that a rag was set ablaze and placed in the gas tank of the vehicle.
Jennings' roommate was the one who alerted him that his car was on fire. The two men ran out with a pot of water to try to extinguish the blaze - but Jennings told ABC Action News it was 'too much'.
Chamblee was taken to the Pinellas County Jail on Saturday according to online records.
She was scheduled to appear in front of a judge on Sunday morning.
'I lied about being pregnant': Girlfriends reveal the most shocking ways they've deceived their partners
- Users of Whisper have been confessing the lies they tell their boyfriends
- Many agreed that they had lied about their former relationships
- One admitted their whole relationship was a lie and she didn't love their boyfriend while another confessed she had faked a pregnancy
When it comes to relationships, most partners will admit to bending the truth slightly or telling the odd white lie.
However, as these women prove, untruths can sometimes escalate to far more serious deceptions.
Users of the secret sharing app Whisper have revealed the worst lies they have told their boyfriends during their relationship and they will leave you shocked.
Taking advantage of the site's anonymity female users have disclosed the most shocking ways they have altered the truth.
For many of the women submitting confessions the main thing they withheld from their boyfriend was information about previous lovers.
One posted: 'I lied to my bf about the number of people I've slept with because I honestly can't remember'.
nother woman admitted that she was lying to herself too, adding: 'I lie to my boyfriend about how many guys I've been with so I appear more innocent. I've convinced myself one night stands don't count.'
Another confession said: 'I lied to my boyfriend about who I had sex with. Just because I don't want him to know I had sex with his best friend the day before we got together.'
One woman added: 'I lied to my boyfriend about having never been kissed. I lied because my first kiss was a girl and he doesn't know I'm bi'.
For other women their lies came with far more dire consequences, including one girlfriend who had faked a pregnancy.
She revealed: 'I lied to my boyfriend about being pregnant. Now I have to either really get pregnant or pretend I miscarried'.
While another user admitted that her whole relationship was a lie when she said: 'I lie to my boyfriend when I tell him I love him. I just don't want to be alone.'
Some of the lies were far less earth shattering with many women admitting they tell white lies to enjoy some alone time.
One women said: 'Today I lied to my boyfriend about being busy because I just didn't want to be near anyone. I stayed home watching Netflix and murder shows.'
Several users said that they told lies for no reason revealing that even they didn't know why they lied.
Said one: 'Sometimes I lie to my boyfriend about meaningless s***. Like tell him I'm watching Family Guy while I'm really watching American Dad. Don't know why I do it.'
Another added: 'I lie to my boyfriend and tell him I'm going out and to call me repeatedly id I don't call by a certain time just to see if he cares'.
I am 32 and I am a doctor. I lost or wasted 6 years of my life. I am confused and I feel like a failure. What should I do?
I am a doctor from India.i got married right after I passed med school and came to USA along with my husband who is a software engineer.
I tried hard to study for the USMLE exams.i could not tolerate the stress of managing everything; studying for the exams, married life, domestic responsibilities, family's issues,health, finances etc.
I didnot have any support at home from my husband.for him it was always his job,his career,his family. He was always travelling.i felt alone,stressed and lonely.
He & his family would abuse me a lot.they frequently mock me about my parents, ask for more & more dowry,gifts, demand money to provide for my education etc
I went into depression.I had to start antidepressant and anti anxiety medication.
At one point I gave up and told my husband that I can't take the stress.i don't mind getting into research or some different career.also I wanted to have a baby. He didn't agree to support me for either.he insisted that I do finish the exams because it was his prestige issue.
I could not tolerate the emotional & verbal abuse, the mind games,the lies, unwanted & unnecessary,too much interference of his family in our personal issues.I felt stuck.
I just wanted to get out of that rut.
Things escalated,fights ensued, after 5 and half yrs of married life, we divorced.
I have to start fresh. I am relieved that I am out of that nasty marriage, but am also sad,depressed that so much of time was wasted.i am not left with anything.
I disappointed myself and my parents. they had so much expectations on me.i feel sad that I couldn't/not able to do anything to my parents who are getting old by the day.
I feel sad looking at others who are so successful in their life; happily married with babies, career etc.that is/was my dream. I feel like a failure now.
I am 32.i graduated from one of the top Medical colleges in India.I am a very good student. I don't know, I wonder where did all that determination,hard work, knowledge vanish??
I still want to do the USMLEs & get into Residency.Now I feel fresh, stress free, little confident. Not entirely up to the best of my abilities or capabilities but I feel I can do it.
But I am not exactly & entirely sure.
I am an old graduate.I have to start everything from scratch. It will take more 2-3 years,lot of effort,energy,money to finish the exams. i also have to look for observerships, externships, research etc, to get some good clinical experience.
Also I need fresh visa to start doing something in USA.
I don't whether it is practical, worth it, to try again & finish all the USMLEs.
My parents want me to be in India so that I can start working in a hospital immediately & meanwhile think what I want to do next.
They think that it is such a struggle to get settled in USA at this stage. They think that, atleast if there was any definite hope that I get residency, it is worth trying.
Some friends suggested to try for residency in Australia.
I often feel guilty that I wasted so much of time, I should have done something all those days.
My head is constantly flooded with the abuses of my husband-that I am a failure,I am useless,I can't do anything, I disappointed everybody, I have no bright future, I have no intentions of making it big in life etc etc..
I try so hard to push these negative thoughts away and study.It was/still is hard to focus and concentrate, but I am at a better position now.
I am taking my antidepressants & antianxiety medication,attend counselling every week., work out,meditate etc.
I know I have it in me that I can again study,work hard.May be I can do it.
Somehow I lack the clarity and surety of it.
Sometimes I feel determined to do it, sometimes I feel like giving up.
I feel confused now. I applied for Student vis& awaiting the approval. Also I am searching for jobs in USA, to support me financially.
A friend suggested that there are certain pharmaceutical and healthcare companies that provide cap exempt H1 visa to medical graduates.I am checking out those options as well.
Few other friends suggested that I should atleast try once to finish all the exams and apply for residency.if it doesn't work out, I can try other options.
I am confused.feeling determined but hope less.
I believe in God.I believe in hope and faith.I believe in determination and hardwork.
I know ,I believe that " if one is determined to do something,there is no stoping.even when faced with obstacle, there is always a way." (I have a big poster in my bedroom with these quotations written on it)
I feel lost,confused,left out,lonely.
What should I do?
Bride-to-be hanged herself trying to ‘go halfway to heaven’ to meet best friend who had died just two weeks earlier
Jazmine Howarth, 25, hanged herself in an attempt to see her friend 'one last time' before planning on carrying on with her life
A BEREAVED bride-to-be accidentally killed herself after believing she could go “halfway” to heaven to say a final goodbye to her dead best friend.
Jazmine Howarth, 25, claimed she could control death and meet up with her best friend and mother of one Dionne Corbett who had killed herself just weeks previously, before returning “to the land of the living”.
The young woman from Radcliffe was found hanged in a community garden just two weeks after her best friend had killed herself.
Jazmine’s childhood friend Dionne, 25, had also hanged herself at her home in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on February 26 following a battle with depression.
The inquest heard that Dionne’s death had left her friend devastated with the women having been best friends since they were toddlers.
The pair had even talked about getting pregnant at the same time so they could “go through it all together” with Jazmine writing a string of letters saying she wanted to see Dionne for “one last time” before coming back so she could “carry on with her life”.
Coroner Lisa Hashmi ruled “death by misadventure”, saying she did not believe Jazmine had meant to kill herself.
She said: “I have no doubt that the loss of her close and very dear friend in very tragic circumstances would have had a profound effect. She attended the chapel of rest to say her goodbyes. I believe she would have found that cathartic.
“They had been of course very close, described as sisterly. Both had had conversations about what the other would do if one lost another, it may have underpinned her actions, but I could not say for sure what bearing, if any, it had.”
But she said the letters left behind from Jazmine, showed the young woman had a “superstitious mind” and believed she could return.
She said: “What I can’t ignore are the letters, whilst it may be that some of them were drafted in the days before her death, described as a superstitious belief in Jazmine’s mind, a number of letters were found that suggested that Jazmine wanted to speak to Dionne for one last time.
“That she believed she could meet Dionne and return to the land of living. What I believe was a failure to appreciate how quick one could die. She had a mistaken belief that she could just pass beyond and return. Quite clearly that was a mistake on her part. It’s probably the naivety of youth that resulted in her sad, tragic and untimely death.”
Family and friends had previously told the inquest that Jazmine had agreed to speak at the funeral of her best friend.
But they said they had no indication that the young woman was planning on taking her own life on March 11.
Her aunt said: “We actually thought that she was much more settled than she had been in a long time. Obviously when her friend Dionne died she was absolutely devastated and the day before Jazmine took her own life she went to say goodbye to Dionne in the chapel with her mum. But there was no indication to her mum that she was thinking of joining her.
“The letter to her mum indicated that what ever she intended to do she thought she could control it. She was very much planning for the funeral, she was looking at reading, planning for that. I know nobody ever expects it but we weren’t – it wasn’t even on our radar.”
Jazmine’s fiance Brendan Cawley said: “They classed each other as sisters, one wouldn’t do without the other. She broke down crying saying, ‘Yeah but I promised I would go and get her’.
“She said that she wanted to go and see her, go halfway to make sure she was alright. Two days before she died I woke up in the middle of the night and looked at Jazmine, she was writing on a piece of paper, I said, ‘What are you doing?’. She said, ‘Nothing, it’s stupid’. I thought in my head that it must be something to do with Dionne.”
He said he had woken to find Jazmine writing down the words from a TV signal that was tuning in and out with the 25-year-old saying she was writing down the words in case it was a message from Dionne.
He recounted the moments before the love of his life killed herself.
Mr Cawley said the couple had argued with the young woman running off and locking the door behind her.
He said: “I think she kind of expected me to save her.”
How to opt out of new WhatsApp data sharing
If you’re one of the one billion-plus global WhatsApp user community, you will (if you haven’t already) be presented with a notification that the app’s Terms and Privacy Policy are changing and prompting you to agree with this.
Click ‘Agree’, and here’s what happens: WhatsApp will share its user data (including yours) with Facebook, the giant which purchased it back in 2014.
At the time, WhatsApp’s founder assured its users that their data would remain private, stating: “Respect for your privacy is coded into our DNA, and we built WhatsApp around the goal of knowing as little about you as possible”.
The new changes give Facebook visibility of the phone number you use with your WhatsApp account, giving them a way to track you that’s shared across both sites, and helping Facebook to gather data for its lucrative advertising activity. Critics are also suggesting there’s a risk that your chats – which you probably regard as being private – could also be compromised.
Two ways to opt out
WhatsApp does not make this obvious – far from it – but there are two ways in which you can opt out of the new terms and in doing so ensure that no data is shared with Facebook. However, it is important that you do this quickly, if you choose to.
1. This method can be used only if you have not yet accepted the new terms presented to you when you open the app. Do not click ‘Agree’, but select the small ‘read more option Untick the statement that begins ‘Share my WhatsApp account information with Facebook’.
2. If you have already accepted the new terms, don’t worry. If it is within 30 days of accepting, you can still opt out by going to the app’s settings menu, selecting the account tab and revoking the ‘Share my account info’ button.
It is not yet clear whether opting out (or revoking permission) will change the user experience either on WhatsApp or Facebook, but we think it is good to know that you have a choice.
Click ‘Agree’, and here’s what happens: WhatsApp will share its user data (including yours) with Facebook, the giant which purchased it back in 2014.
At the time, WhatsApp’s founder assured its users that their data would remain private, stating: “Respect for your privacy is coded into our DNA, and we built WhatsApp around the goal of knowing as little about you as possible”.
The new changes give Facebook visibility of the phone number you use with your WhatsApp account, giving them a way to track you that’s shared across both sites, and helping Facebook to gather data for its lucrative advertising activity. Critics are also suggesting there’s a risk that your chats – which you probably regard as being private – could also be compromised.
Two ways to opt out
WhatsApp does not make this obvious – far from it – but there are two ways in which you can opt out of the new terms and in doing so ensure that no data is shared with Facebook. However, it is important that you do this quickly, if you choose to.
1. This method can be used only if you have not yet accepted the new terms presented to you when you open the app. Do not click ‘Agree’, but select the small ‘read more option Untick the statement that begins ‘Share my WhatsApp account information with Facebook’.
2. If you have already accepted the new terms, don’t worry. If it is within 30 days of accepting, you can still opt out by going to the app’s settings menu, selecting the account tab and revoking the ‘Share my account info’ button.
It is not yet clear whether opting out (or revoking permission) will change the user experience either on WhatsApp or Facebook, but we think it is good to know that you have a choice.
Keeping children safe online
- More than one million victims to online crime last year - and 20 percent were children who had downloaded a virus to the parents¹ computer
- Teach kids not to share personal or bank details over Whatsapp
- Suggest a fake name or school to keep youngsters extra safe on Facebook
With September fast approaching, children are preparing to pack away their suncream and head back to school.
This means youngsters will be back on their laptops and iPads and susceptible to identity theft and malicious viruses.
From creating a fake Facebook name to avoiding email freebies, FEMAIL has compiled the top tips and tricks to help children stay safe online.
More than one million people in the country were victims to online crime last year, a study in Singapore found.
Online security company Symantec discovered that 20 per cent of these people said it was their children who had downloaded a virus or malicious software to the parents¹ computer.
Another danger are cyberthieves, who see children as easy targets.
Criminals, for example, can combine a child¹s social security number with a fake date of birth and address to open bank accounts, get credit cards or loans.
As youngsters grow, they learn to use the internet and sharing information on social media safely.
However, the time before this learning curve is the most dangerous - and this is when parents and educators should step in.
Here are some simple tricks for parents to teach their children about online privacy and security.
1. Lay out ground rules
Whether your little darling is a child or teenager, it's good to lay down a few basic guidelines. For example, you can start by telling that anything shared once on the internet stays there forever and that nothing is 100 per cent private.
2. Be careful with personal information
First tell your child what 'personal information' means.
Draw up a list for them and tell them clearly that they should always check with you before sharing those details together with any website or person on the Internet.
3. Password protection and usage
Children at a young age start creating their own email accounts.
Although such email websites alert users to choose strong passwords, advise your son or daughter on what kind of passwords to choose.
Tell them that the password could be a mix of characters and special symbols and ask them never to share their passwords with anyone, perhaps even with you.
Diceware is an easy to use password methodology, where you roll a six-sided die five times and use the results to pick five random words from the list.
4. Curb social media usage
Children spend a lot of time on social media, so it¹s important to let them know what is okay to share and what isn¹t.
Discuss what they should not share on social media. If you want to take an extra step in securing your child¹s online privacy, create fake social media names for them and a fake school or city name.
5. Privacy over Whatsapp
Sending messages with apps such as Whatsapp is something every teenager does, but they don¹t always know that their chats are not 100 per cent private.
Therefore, you should advise them never to share personal or bank details or other sensitive information like passwords via messages.
6. Share news of personal hacks with them
If your child is old enough to understand this, share the latest news about identity thefts or personal hacks with them to make them aware of the dangers they face while using the Internet.
7. Explain the dangers of free public Wi-Fi
Kids love free Wi-Fi who doesn¹t. Cafes and shops might have unsecured Wi-Fi networks.
Explain to your kids to be especially cautious when connecting to these networks as they can easily be monitored.
One of the best ways to safely use public Wi-Fi is by installing a VPN (see below). You can pre-install a VPN on a mobile device and teach kids to turn it on whenever using public Wi-Fi.
8. Install a VPN (virtual private network)
For ultimate protection install a VPN service on the device they use to encrypt their online communication data.
VPN creates a connection tunnel that automatically encrypts all the data coming in and out of your device, and effectively protects anyone using the Internet.
NordVPN is one of the safest and most user-friendly VPNs on the market. All you have to do is press the ON button and you are connected. NordVPN works on up to six devices, and now also has Mac and Android apps.
How smoking cannabis can harm YOUR unborn baby.
- Scientists are agreed smoking in pregnancy is dangerous to unborn baby
- Tobacco can cause lower birth weight and premature delivery
- Exists very little evidence of the effect of cannabis on unborn babies
- New study found smoking pot and tobacco together 'increases risk of low birth weight, pre-term birth, asthma in babies'
- Results increasingly important as more expectant mothers smoke pot
- Between 2 and 11% of pregnant American women use drug, experts say
How smoking cannabis can harm YOUR unborn baby: Smoking both cannabis and tobacco during pregnancy creates a greater health risk to your unborn baby, than cigarettes alone, experts have warned.
Though the statement may sound obvious, more women are using the drug while they are expecting, as it becomes legal in more places.
Dr Diana Racusin, from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, says this is partly the case because some expectant mothers view it as being less risky than other substances.
It is widely accepted in scientific circles that smoking in pregnancy is linked to a number of health problems for babies, including low birth weight and early delivery.
But, there exists very little evidence about the effects marijuana has during pregnancy, despite the fact two to 11 per cent of expectant American mothers use the drug.
Dr Racusin said: 'In co-users both marijuana and cigarettes we noted an increase in smaller babies, earlier deliveries, asthma and pregnancy-related hypertension.'
To see what effects marijuana alone or in combination with cigarettes might have on both mothers and babies, the study team analyzed data on 12,069 women who gave birth between January 2011 and June 2015 at hospitals associated with Baylor College of Medicine.
The participants were all surveyed around the time of delivery about their use of marijuana, tobacco and other nicotine-containing products during pregnancy.
The researchers gathered information about birth outcomes from medical records.
Of the entire group, 106 women, or less than one per cent, reported using marijuana while pregnant.
And 48 of these, or just under half the marijuana users, said they also smoked cigarettes while pregnant.
Overall, a total of 242 women, or two per cent of the study participants, reported having smoked cigarettes.
In co-users both marijuana and cigarettes we noted an increase in smaller babies, earlier deliveries, asthma and pregnancy-related hypertension
Dr Diana Racusin, from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston
Researchers found that women who smoked both marijuana and tobacco were more than twice as likely as women who used neither substance to experience asthma, two and a half times as likely to deliver prematurely and nearly three times as likely to have babies with small heads or low birth weight.
Smoking cigarettes alone was also linked to smaller infant head size, lower birth weight and premature delivery, but these risks were higher when combined with marijuana use.
There were no significant differences - meaning differences larger than could be due to chance - between women who smoked just marijuana, or their babies, and women who did not smoke anything and their babies.
Women who smoked either pot or cigarettes but not both did not have significantly higher rates of pregnancy-related high blood pressure than nonsmokers.
But women who smoked both substances were two and a half times more likely to have pregnancy-related high blood pressure.
The study team notes that women who reported using both marijuana and tobacco were more likely than the others to have diabetes and high blood pressure before pregnancy.
Women who used only tobacco during pregnancy or only marijuana, and those who used both, were also four to seven times more likely than women who used neither to have depression or anxiety.
Mothers who did not get sufficient prenatal care, meaning they went to fewer than 11 doctor visits during pregnancy, were more likely to smoke either marijuana or cigarettes.
Dr Carri Warshak, an associate professor at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio who studies the effects of marijuana use in pregnancy, said that the most consistent effect is a lower birth weight in babies.
'When babies are born both small and premature, the birth weight becomes vitally important for improving survival and healthy outcomes,' said Dr Warshak, who was not involved in the study.
Babies who are born small are at greater risk for feeding difficulties and jaundice and may even experience heart problems later in life, she added.
'We are only now beginning to learn about the ramifications of marijuana use in pregnancy,' Dr Racusin said.
'Tobacco use is clearly detrimental to fetal health, and therefore baby health. It is very likely that marijuana use shares some of the untoward effects. To optimize fetal health and the health of the child, it is best to avoid use of marijuana and tobacco in pregnancy,' Dr Warshak said.
The findings are published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
THEY'RE TAKING THE PIERCE Are they taking the pierce? Eye-watering fad sees volunteers hanging from hooks attached to their flesh for HOURS
BODY piercings have become a mainstream fashion statement in recent years – with plenty of people sporting jewellery in places such as their ears, bellybuttons and noses.
But some body modification enthusiasts in Croatia have taken the trend to a whole new level – carrying out an extreme form of piercing known as body suspension.
Shocking images capture the moment a woman from the United States, known only as 28-year-old Kaitlin, is suspended from a metal frame using hooks pierced through skin all over her body, on the rooftop of an empty building in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia.
The daring procedure was carried out by Dino Helvida, a 27-year-old professional piercer and body suspension expert from Bosnia and Herzegovina – who has been suspending the frames of his brave clients for the past six years, sometimes for hours at a time.
In this case, working with his girlfriend Zorana, he pierces Caitlin’s skin with needles, before inserting metallic hooks which are then attached to a thin rope to lift the suspendee off the ground.
Dino explained to Reuters: “You can do one hook or you can do 100. You have different hooks for different positions and different hooks for different body parts.
“So everything is really calculated and it’s safe.”
But he is quick to reassure that despite its brutal appearance, his clients aren’t left with permanent scarring from the alternative practice.
He said: “It is painful. Piercing is painful, it’s just like regular piercing. Every time it’s a new piercing and the wound heals really fast, it can heal in two weeks.
“I had hooks in my forehead and nobody can tell I had them.”
He added that how long people stay suspended for varies and is totally up to them – and can depend on their position and how they feel.
He said: “Some people stay for four, five hours, some people need only three seconds.”
The Atlantic reports that the practice of body suspension dates back around 5,000 years – with the most ancient suspensions most likely occurring in India as part of religious tradition. These days, it is often seen by its fans as a spiritual experience or a way to test the body’s limits – and Dino was inspired to try it after watching a documentary.
He explained: “I watched a documentary and when I saw it, I knew I had to do it.
“It’s very hard to explain (what it feels like). For me, it’s releasing all the negative and bringing all the positive in.”
Photos: The Rich Kids of Instagram
Source: Dailymail Uk
- One woman treats young daughter to shopping sprees at Louis Vuitton
- A wealthy Rolls Royce owner pictured a cheetah on the bonnet wearing a harness
- Rich parents take trips on private jets and joke about giving money to 'peasants'
- Yulianna who hails from Moscow posed in a Ferrari 458 Spider, costing more than £199,000
We've seen the rich kids of countries from China to Russia to the UK flaunt their wealth on social media, and now their parents are getting in on the act, showing off trips on private jets, designer shopping sprees and even a pet cheetah.
The recently relaunched Rich Parents of Instagram account is run by the same man who shares photos of the wealthy youngsters of London.
And he said that parents are eager to show off their lavish lifestyles because they feel they have earned their money - unlike some of their spoiled offspring.
'I find it very interesting and I want to motivate people to do well,' he explained.
'I have received messages from people saying it helps them to work hard and that they want to achieve as much as they possible can.'
One moneyed parent shared an image of her young daughter, clutching a huge shopping bag with the caption: 'Treating my daughter to Louis Vuitton, one of her weekly shopping trips.'
Meanwhile, Yulianna who hails from Moscow posed in a Ferrari 458 Spider, costing more than £199,000.
