Guardian We dupe only single women, say suspects TUESDAY, 25 JUNE 2013 00:00 BY ODITA SUNDAY NEWS - METRO • SFU arrests two bank workers who connive with fraudsters THE Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU) has arrested two staff members of Skye Bank Plc. for aiding Internet fraudsters who receive monies from their victims through the Western Union Money Transfer. The suspects, who were paraded by the Commissioner of Police Special Fraud Unit, Mr. Tunde Ogunshakin, at its 13 Milverton Road, Ikoyi office yesterday, had allegedly duped their victims of millions of naira using the Internet. He warned owners of cyber cafés to desist from giving access to fraudsters in their shops. “The Special Fraud Unit in its battle against Internet fraudsters has recorded yet a giant step in nabbing cyber fraudsters who are up and doing daily,” he said. In a petition through the unit’s website from one Amela Brosick, a United States citizen, dated April 16, 2013, she alleged that one Devon Miles, suspected to be a Nigerian, defrauded her of the sum of $16,439 through different tactics. She further said she met the suspect under the guise of dating her for marriage, and obtained the alleged sum fraudulently through Western Union Money Transfer. According to Ogunshakin: “Upon the receipt of the petition, the Western Union Money Transfer was contacted and it sent a detailed spread-sheet showing all fraudulent money transfers transacted by the suspect.” “Following the information, the duo of Nnamdi Nwakwue Dike and Olawale Ogunniran attached to the Western Union Money Transfer from Skye Bank, Owerri and Allen Avenue, Ikeja branches respectively were arrested. Their revealing statements led to the arrest of serial Internet fraudsters: Uche Chibuzor Akobundu also known as Devon Miles/Martin Williams and one Sani Bala Ismaila,” he said. According to him: “Other victims were Jettie. F. Simpson - $5,000; Shelly Bashir sent only $100 and backed out when she suspected that it was fraud. The next victim was Billie Klock, who sent $13,000 for a relationship that lasted for five months. Then followed by Aurea Desena who sent $8,000 to him and he lavished the money in South Africa.” “It was when his relationship with the last victim ended that he met the petitioner Amelia Brosick whom he swindled the sum of $16,439. He connived with a Skye Bank employees, Nnamdi and Bala to perpetrate the fraud. He confessed that he provided the duo with the photocopy of his ID so that they could pull out the monies while he gave them some percentage of the amount and that they used it to withdraw for other persons without his knowledge.” “He also stated that they were aware of his fraudulent acts. In fact, it was Nnamdi that advised him to open an account with another name so as to avoid being caught and this made it easy for Nnamdi to pull out money from Western Union for him, collect his own share and would pay the rest into his account with them. The suspect stated that he lavished the whole money on trips to South Africa and hotel bills.’ The Skye Bank worker, Niran Olawale, who works at the Allen Avenue branch, told newsmen that he had been doing the deal with the fraudsters for a long time. He was paraded alongside 25-year-old Nnamdi Dike of Owerri branch. Olawale confessed: “We have been doing it for them for a long time. They normally come for their Western Union. I have been with Skye bank for six years. I am a Teller. They don’t give me extra money after paying them. They only give me gifts of N2, 000 and N5, 000 as the case may be. Bala is the one who usually comes to the bank. I had been arrested before by the SFU over a similar matter.” The prime suspect, Uche Akobundo, who sends the fraudulent emails, told reporters that he usually targets single women and divorcees. He simply described his victims as “clients.” “I use the cyber café or my laptop. We normally set up a profile with fake picture. The website is a site for single women. I target women between the ages of 40- 50. I tell them I am 48 years old. I pose to them as a divorcee,” he said.
Posted on: Wed, 26 Jun 2013 07:31:43 +0000
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