By Chiemelie Ezeobi
Operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) of the Lagos State Police Command, yesterday arrested three suspected internet fraudsters, who specialise in duping property dealers.
In one instance, the trio were said to have swindled a property dealer in Lagos of about N4million, an act that led to their arrest.
Posing as potential clients, the crack team had lured the three suspects- Olisa Oyegbuka, 28, Ifeanacho Kingsley, 27, and Ujunwa Aniemena, 33, and got them arrested in Akwa, Anambra State.
The arrest of the suspects came barely less than month after the RRS burst another syndicate of Internet fraudsters.
The suspects are part of internet fraudsters that specialises in hacking into email addresses and using them to send messages seeking transfer of funds in tranches to different accounts.
According to the Lagos-based property dealer, “I received an email giving payment instructions. The owner of the email address is my client. It gave payment instructions to transfer funds in my custody to an account belonging to one Emmanuel Ajinubi with First bank Account No. 3046974892.
“The first transfer of N800,000 was on October 24, 2016. On October 27, 2016, there was another instruction to transfer N530,000 to same account.”
“And on November 1, 2016, I transferred N720, 000 into Ifenancho Kingsley, First Bank, Account 3050290672 and on further instruction the following day transferred N850,000 to same account.
“The total amount transferred into the two accounts was N3,820,000. Just after the payment on November 2, my client called me. That was when we realised that the payment instructions did not emanate from him, rather, it was made by fraudsters.”
One of the suspect whose account was used during the transfer, Ifeanacho Kingsley, admitted that two separate transactions of N720,000 and N850,000 were transferred into his account, adding that, a family friend, Chinedu Emmanuel, had requested for his account details and thereafter took his ATM card and code to withdraw the money.
He said: “The first alert of N720, 000, I got on my phone but within a twinkle of an eye, the money was wiped from my account.
“The following day, I got another alert of N850,000. Almost instantly, there were lots of POS transactions bearing “Grand POS” Asaba. Since then, I have not seen him and I don’t know the kind of job he does. As I talk to you, my ATM card is still with him.”
Another suspect, Olisa Oyegbuka told investigators that his friend, Egbuka, who was arrested by RRS few weeks earlier, was the one who used his account to transfer N800,000 into a Fidelity Bank account belonging to one Tamino.
RRS investigators said that efforts were still on – going to arrest other members of the gangs who they believed are directly involved in the hacking into of some corporate and individuals’ e -mail for fraudulent purposes.
Confirming the arrests, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, warned criminals using other states as a base to perpetuate crime in Lagos that the command would get them from their hideouts.
The three suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal and Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, for further investigations.
