The Nation Newspaper

Tag: defrauded

  • 14 job seekers ‘defrauded’ by ‘fake’ Buhari’s aide in Niger

    The Niger State Police Command has  arrested a man posing as an aide to President Muhammadu Buhari to dupe unsuspecting job seekers of over N4.2 million.

    Kabiru Mohammed, 37, allegedly defrauded 14 job applicants in Gurara Local Government Area.

    The suspect, it was learnt, deceived his victims by telling them that his boss, who is purportedly one of the Special Advisers to President, had the capacity to secure employment for them in the police, the Nigeria Customs Services, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Navy, Air Force, Nigeria Immigration Services and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    The victims – Atahiru Tukura, Bello Abubakar, Mohammed Hussaini, Rabiu Tukura, Umar Danladi, Jibrin Shagabe, Zubairu Danladi, Halidu Musa, Basiru Usman, Mustaph Shehu, Ibrahim Mustaph, Yusuf Ibrahim, Adamu Mohammed and Ahmed Salihu – said they paid between N100,000 and N800,000 to Mohammed.

    The police also arrested Ishaya Christopher for allegedly printing fake employment letters and identity (ID) cards.

    Mohammed, the police said, confessed that he acted as an intermediary between his   unnamed boss and the victims.

    “Frankly speaking, I thought it was genuine, after all, nothing is impossible in Nigeria. A lot of people I know have got jobs through the back doors like this. I never knew that it was fake. It is unfortunate.

    “Ninety-five per cent of jobs in Nigerian are got through the same way, or is it because these did not work out and they labelled me criminal? But if it had worked out, I would have become a hero, a man who can get jobs at will for applicants,” the suspect reportedly said.

    Kabiru, the police said, did not regret his action, as he reportedly regretted that his dream of getting huge amounts of money was dashed.

    “I have nothing to regret, but my only regret was that it did not work out as planned and my hope of getting huge amount of money was dashed out,” the police quoted him as saying.

    Police spokesman Muhammad Abubakar said the suspect confessed to have committed the offence with Peter James, who is said to be on the run.

  • How I was defrauded of N2.522m’

    A depositor of Aims Asset  Management Limited (AAML), Silas Chukwuma Ugwumba,  has accused the financial house of allegedly defrauding him of N2.522 million.

    At the resumed hearing of the matter last week, the claimant, who is also the Proprietor of God Dey  Graphics Supply Limited, told an Ikeja Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Ogba and presided by Chief Magistrate Mrs E. Kubeinje how the fraud was perpetuated.

    Led in evidence by his counsel, A.K.  Sanni, the claimant said he  was told by the managers of the AAML to invest some money in the company and that a after some time, the money would have yield good interest.

    “I asked the manager  how many years such an investment would take and he told me that there is the one for five years and 10 years; so, I did the one of five years for me and my family at an agreed interest rate,”he said.

    Ugwumba said he invested N1million on behalf of himself, his wife and children and was to collect the principal and  N1.522million as interest on his deposit after five years but that nothing was paid to him at the end of the tenor, making a total of N2.522million.

    “After the period of five years, I called the managers and  they said that they no longer work there. So, I went to the company and they told me that the money had reduced to N1.5million, but they still refused to pay me.

    “So, I said instead of the N1.5million, give me the amount I invested but I have not seen  anything till today. It was in 2008 that I invested N1million into the company.”

    When asked by the trial Chief Magistrate the details of the investment, the claimant said he was not aware of the kind of investment the company does but insisted on having  invested N1million in the company.

    However, counsel to the claimants, Sanni  said to date, the defendant had not shown any concern, remorse nor  defended the allegation.

    “They  will just collect money from you and ask you to go home and sleep that the money will yield interest”.

    Sanni said the claimants have sworn to an affidavit of claims and provided proof of evidence of the investment that was  made before the court.

    He urged the court to give an order that the invested amount be refunded “even if it is not in the jurisprudence of the court to order the interest to be collected”.

    The trial Chief Magistrate Kubeinje however declined to give any order. Rather she instructed the claimants to provide the court further details on how the contract between the claimant and the defendant emanated.

    She said there was need to look deeply into the matter before the court can make any pronouncement.

    She therefore adjourned the matter till September 3, 2015 for continuation of hearing.

     

     

     

  • Bayelsa: No commissioner was defrauded

    BAYELSA State yesterday debunked reports that the suspected fake reporter of the Cable News Network (CNN), Paul Yempe, defrauded commissioners before police arrested him.

    A statement by the Commissioner for Information, Deacon Markson Fefegha, however, admitted that the alleged impostor attempted to conduct interviews with officials of the government.

    Yempe was reportedly lodged in a top flight hotel by an official of the government while preparing for the interview.

    But Fefegha said: “The story is not true and members of the public are urged to ignore the said report as no commissioner was duped by the fraudster.

    “Before the arrest of the said fraudster by the police, the man had introduced himself to the Commissioner of Information and Orientation, Deacon Markson Fefegha as Paul Yempe.

    “He was being investigated by the office of the Honourable Commissioner of Information when he was apprehended following a tip-off by the State NUJ Chairman, Mr Tarinyo Akono, at the Office of the state Commissioner of Energy, Barrister Francis Ikio.”

     

  • How ex-PDP chair Ali’s son, oil marketer defrauded govt of N4.5b, court told

    A Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, yesterday heard how Mamman, son of former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Ahmadu Ali and others allegedly defrauded the Federal Government of N4.5billion.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) charged him, Christian Taylor, Nassaman Oil Services and an oil marketer Mr. Seun Ogunbambo before Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo with fraudulently obtaining the money from the government between January and April, last year.

    The money was for subsidy payments from the Petroleum Support Fund for the purported importation of 30.5million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) (also known as petrol), the commission said.

    According to EFCC, the defendants did not import the products, but forged numerous documents with which they perpetrated the fraud.

    A prosecution witness, Chidi Onyedikwe, whose company, Inspectorate Marine Services Limited, issues import certificates for petroleum products, said the documents which the defendants presented to the government to receive payments were not issued by the firm.

    Led in evidence by EFCC’s lawyer, Francis Usani, at the trial yesterday, Onyedikwe said his company checks the quantity and quality of petroleum products imported before they are transferred from one ship to another or from a ship to a terminal.

    According to him, they operate in Lagos, Warri, Calabar, offshore Lagos, offshore Cotonou and offshore Lome, and represent buyers, sellers, banks, government agencies and anybody who engages their services.

    But his firm, he said, never represented the company belonging to Ali’s son.

    His words: “We issue documents from our office and we sign and stamp them to show we were in attendance. We work for the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), among other oil companies. I have never done any job for a company called Nassaman Oil Services.

    “Sometime in November 2012, we received a letter from the EFCC, Lagos office, addressed to our firm, with about 27 documents attached.

    “The letter asked us to tell if those documents were authentic or not. Among the documents were certificates with images of our logo and stamp on them. On receipt of the letter, we went through our operational and laboratory records and accounts.

    “After the checks, we told EFCC that those documents did not emanate from us. We also had to check with the account department because we charge for jobs. There was no charge in the first place because we didn’t do the job, so there was no payment and there were no records.”

    Justice Onigbanjo adjourned till March 20 for cross-examination of the witness by defense counsel.

  • Court told how ex-works minister, others ‘defrauded’ government

    A Federal High Court, Abuja yesterday heard how former Minister of Works, Dr. Hassan Muhammed Lawal and nine others allegedly misappropriated about N6.4 billion equity contribution by the Federal Government, Nasarawa and Kogi state governments for the construction of the Guto Bagana Bridge.

    The revelation came after they pleaded guilty to the amended 44-count charge brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

    The nine others are Dr. Adeogba Godwin Ademola, Digital Toll Company Limited, Swede Control Interlink Limited, Proman Vital Ventures Limited, Nairda Limited, Siraj Nigeria Limited and Wise Health Services Limited.

    The accused allegedly perpetrated the fraud through a bridge contract, which was to link Nasarawa with Kogi.

    The term of the contract awarded on Public Private Partnership was, Built Operate and Transfer between the Federal Government and the two state governments on one hand and the concessionaire, Swede Control Intertek Limited.

    Testifying against the accused, a prosecution witness, Mr. Chike Nwibe, a member of the team that investigated the scam, said investigation showed that the Federal Government and the two state governments paid their equity contribution of N6.4 billion, while the private partner did not.

    Led in evidence-in-chief by the EFCC counsel, Wahab Shittu, the witness, who is a Deputy Superintendent of Police revealed that “some of the documents available to the investigation team show that the N6.4 billion and other contributions in connection to the contract are to be paid into a joint account to be managed by signatories of the two parties.

    “However, that did not happen as monies were most times released directly to another company, which later transformed into being the concessionaire. The name of the company is Digital Tolls Company Limited (DTCL), which belongs to the third accused person, Dr. AdeogbaGodwin Ademola,” the witness added.