Find the EFCC press
statement below...
A deadly syndicate of
fraudsters who virtually opened an office for the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission in Akure, the Ondo State capital, from where they dispatch fake
invitation letters to unsuspecting heads of government agencies purporting to
be carrying out investigation activities against them, has been uncovered.
The
kingpin of the syndicate, one Olubunmo Olalekan, who is currently in EFCC
custody in Abuja, was arrested by operatives of the Department of State
Service, DSS, and handed over to the Commission.
At the
point of arrest, Olalekan who parades himself as a Principal Detective
Superintendent of the EFCC, had in his possession fake letter head papers of
the Commission, 30 GSM sim cards, assorted complimentary cards, a laptop
computer and printer from where he churns out the fraudulent invitation
letters.
His
modus operandi is to send out the bulk invitation letters to as many agencies
as possible, via courier, claiming to have pending petitions alleging
corruption against their heads.
Investigations
so far revealed that the suspect has written and distributed over sixty letters
purportedly from the Commission to several top officials of ministries,
department and agencies. Among them are the chairman, Oyo State Universal Basic
Education Board, Ibadan; Managing Director, NPDC Limited, Sapele Road, Benin
City; Professor Idowu Odeyemi, Provost Nigerian Institute of Mining and
Geosciences, Jos; Managing Director/Chief Executive Office, Jebba Hydro
Electric Plc, Jebba, Niger State; Medical Director, National Obstetric Fistula
Centre, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State; Dr. Iyela Ajayi, Provost Federal College of
Education, Okene, Kogi State and a host of others.
He
would leave a GSM number in the letters asking the agency heads to contact a
PDS Adeniyi. Those who fall for the scam are asked to pay money for the
purported case against them to be dropped.
The
syndicate had gone to the extent of issuing clearance letters to those that met
their terms.
But
some heads of agencies that are sure they had done nothing untoward to warrant
investigation by the EFCC have been bold to contact the Commission, which was
how Olalekan was nabbed.
Dr.
Asunyikanmu Pius, director of Technical Aids Corps, Abuja was one of the agency
heads targeted by the scammer. But once he received the invitation letter with
instruction to contact a PDS Adeniyi, Dr. Pius alerted the Commission. He was
encouraged to play along and consequently paid the sum of N2 million into an
Access Bank Account as demanded by the suspect to throw the case. A sting
operation was planned, but Olalekan was arrested by men of the DSS before he
could draw the money.
Investigation
so far revealed that the suspect who operates from his home in Shagari
Extension, Akure, Ondo State has obtained millions of naira from victims who
were willing to pay his price to escape the ordeal of a phantom investigation.
Unknown to them, they had enriched a fraudster.
Olalekan
is not the lone player in this scheme of trickery. His two accomplices, a
certain Ahaji Yero and one Mr Bako are currently at large even as the EFCC
launches a massive manhunt to bring them to justice.
Olalekan’s
arrest represents a major breakthrough in the effort of the EFCC to break the
ring of fraudsters that specializes in impersonating officials of the agency to
dupe unsuspecting members of the public.
The
Commission has repeatedly warned members of the public to be wary of invitation
letters purportedly emanating from the agency with instructions to contact any
supposed official through a GSM line.
No
authentic EFCC invitation letter will request anybody to contact an official by
telephone. Rather, you are asked to report at an EFCC office to be interviewed
by a designated officer.
Members of the public
are encouraged to report any suspicious invitation to the Commission’s
Department of Internal Affairs by email: DIA@EFCCNIGERIA.ORG or call
this number: 09- 9044758 between 8am and 5pm weekdays only.
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