Four suspected thieves that specialised in buying stolen goods were caught after burgling a branch of Redeemed Christian Church of God in Okpanam Asaba, Delta State and carting away musical instruments and industrial fans.

However, luck ran out on the thieves when they decided to rob a building site. They were caught red handed stealing building materials and beaten to a pulp before being handed over to the Okpanam Divisional Police Headquarters

At the bail application hearing of embattled Daar Communications Chairman Raymond Dokpesi, at the Federal High Court Abuja yesterday December 10th, counsel to the Federal Government, Rotimi Jacobs objected to his bail application, stating that EFCC operatives was investigating a fresh case of N8.4 billion fraud Dokpesi illegally collected for the airing the FIFA U-17 World Cup hosted by Nigeria in 2012

Jacobs in his submission, said that although Dokpesi claimed that FIFA granted his company the airing rights, the federal government was not a party to the contract.

“Here is a man, who in 2012, collected over N8 billion for the contract for airing of the Under-17 World Cup organised by FIFA. Nigeria was not part of the contract agreement with FIFA, yet, this applicant collected the huge sum from the treasury of this country.

Again, let me say here that Nigeria is bleeding and it is the duty of everybody, including judges in court, to ensure that we fight and put an end to corrupt tendencies in this country.”he said

Dokpesi is facing prosecution by EFCC for allegedly receiving the sum of N2.billion from the office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, for PDP’s presidential media campaign.

Minister of Education Malam Adamu Adamu yesterday in Abuja inaugurated committees to investigate the managements of 10 universities and polytechnics over allegations of abuse of due process, financial mismanagement and s*xual harassment.

The minister said government had received numerous complaints against the governing councils and management of some institutions and resolved to set fact-finding committees to determine the veracity of the claims and give appropriate recommendations.

The institutions include the Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Katsina State, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, Federal University Kashere, Gombe State, University of Abuja, FCT and University of Nsukka, Enugu state.

Others are Federal Polytechnic, Auchi, Edo State, Federal Polytechnic Oko, Anambra State, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos State and University of Calabar, Cross River State.

Source: DailyTrust

Press statement from RRS 

A 54-year-old man, Michael Bisa, who is an expert in swindling members of the public by disguising to be selling a mobile phone, was arrested by operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS). He was arrested along Oshodi-Apapa Expressway over the weekend at about 17:50 hours when the police suspected his movement on sighting him. Items such as fake phones, key soap cut to size, shirts, sum amount of money, packet of envelopes and cut to size cartons were recovered from him.

He is a native of Delta State and confessed to the crime. He claimed that it was poverty that led him into the act of defrauding innocent public. He explained the tactics that he uses to swindle his victims under false pretense, “What I usually do is called Exchange. My prospective victims will have the mind of buying handset from me but unknowingly to them I would have changed the real handset to soap wrapped with cut to size carton put inside an envelope. I will engage them in discussion after showing them real phone initially, and in the process of bargaining for the price, I will change it with the aid of white handkerchief to fake phone. And I will tell them to keep the phone inside their pockets immediately that people are watching us…. He narrated further", As soon as they left the spot, I will change my clothe to another for uneasy recognition in case he discovers the trick in miles away that he has been duped.”

The suspect, who had fathered four children from three different women, further explained "I was a refrigerator technician in Uvwie LGA, Effuru in Delta State. I came to Lagos to look for greener pastures about 15 years ago, but my expectations were dashed when situations got so hard for me in the center of excellence. I met one guy then, Hakeem Tijani, he is late now, and he was the one that introduced this act of stealing to me. Since that time, about 4 years ago now, this act of stealing has been my only source of livelihood… My first wife taught me how to smoke all sorts of hard drugs including cocaine. She died sometimes ago from the complications she suffered due to much intake of hard drug", he said.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP Joe Offor, warned the general public to be weary of individuals and shops where they purchase their mobile phones in order not to fall victim of con men. The suspect was charged to court immediately.

Two members of a gang that specializes in scamming vulnerable women on dating sites, have been arrested. They are Nigerian student Ife Ojo, 31, and NHS admin worker Olusegun Agbaje, 43. They are due to be sentenced on the 8th of January, 2016.



The woman in her 40s thought she was in an online relationship with a divorcee father-of-one called Christian Anderson. Little did she know she was being tricked by a gang of fraudsters who duped her into loaning them a staggering £1.6m, telling her it was needed to free up inheritance so they could start a new life together.

26-year-old banker, Daniel Makanjuola, has been arrested by the Police in Lagos for using a forged West African Senior School Certificate and Lagos State University’s statement of result to get a job at Wema Bank Plc, Marina branch,Lagos Island.
                           

The police said Makanjuola pretended that he was a degree holder in marketing with Second Class, Upper Division, and had also provided a forged National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate and a reference letter to the bank before he gained employment. He claimed to have obtained the letter from United Bank for Africa, where he supposedly worked previously.

According to Punch, Daniel who is from Ijero Local Government Area in Ekiti State, had joined the bank in 2013, before he was sacked in July 2015 after the documents were confirmed to be fake.

It was gathered that the fraudulent act was discovered after WEMA Bank management had sent a verification letter UBA to to verify the authenticity of the reference letter. UBA was said to have denied any knowledge of Makanjuola and the letter.

After the discovery, the bank decided to write West African Examinations Council and LASU, to confirm the veracity of his documents but both exam bodies disclaimed the results Makanjuola had presented to WEMA

The suspect was arrested after the case was reported at the Lion Building Police Station.

After his arrest, the suspect, in a statement to the police confessed to the crime and explained how he obtained the forged certificates.

He said he made the fake documents because he couldn’t get a job and he wanted to alleviate the poverty in his family.

He said:

“I am actually a National Diploma holder. I secured the fake WASCE and LASU results, using a search engine and CorelDraw application. I scanned an NYSC certificate and used some applications to edit it. I did it in order to put an end to the suffering of my poor family. I am the only son of my father. I want the authority to be compassionate with my case. I was only trying to live a better life.”

A police prosecutor, Inspector I. Okeke, arraigned Makanjuola at the Tinubu Magistrate’s Court on three counts of forgery.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the charges before the presiding magistrate, Mr. A. Adefulire.

Adefulire granted him bail in the sum of N100,000 with two sureties in like sum. He adjourned the case till October 22, 2015.

Source: Punch

                                       
National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 34-year-old man with 108 Automated Teller Machine debit cards at the Murtala Muhammed International airport in Lagos.

The suspected man is reportedly working for an international criminal organization. Pascal Udeh‎ was arrested while he was trying to board a Qatar Airline flight to China.

Premium Times reports that the ATM cards belong to five commercial banks.

Ahmadu Garba‎, the NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, said the Pascal was arraigned in connection with supposed money laundering and was straightaway carried out to the assets and financial investigation directorate of the agency for the probe.

Agency said that the highest number of debt cards belong to First City Monument Bank, 23 cards to Stanbic IBTC Bank; 19 – Zenith Bank, 6 – Fidelity Bank, and 2 from Diamond Bank.

Victoria Egbase, the director of assets and financial investigation, said the NDLEA had constituted a prima facie case of financial crime against the man and that the chair had directed the transfer of the case to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for further inquiry.

                                                         

Ahmadu Giade, the NDLEA chairman, said: “This is a suspected money laundering case involving cash transfer with debit cards,” said Mr. Giade.

“The EFCC will carry out further investigation on the case. We must continue to work together as a united force against criminal syndicates.”

The agency cited the suspect as saying that he was asked to take the cards to China.

Udeh said: “I am not the owner of the cards.”

“I was told to take them to China and that somebody will collect them from me when I get there. I have a shop where I sell clothes at Onitsha main market.

“I am also a 300-level student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, Anambra state studying history and international relations. I never knew it would lead to my arrest.”

The arrested man comes from Obibi in Orlu local government area of Imo state.

                                      
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, October 14, 2015 arraigned the duo of Nosa Ohenhen Ericson and Abraham Adasah before Justice Peter Kekemeke of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Apo, Abuja, on a 6-count charge of forgery and conspiracy.
Ericson and Adasah allegedly presented a false Diamond bank statement to the British High Commission alongside a forged letter from one “Honourable Ohenhen Nosakhare”, purported to be the Chairman of Edo State Oil and Gas Producing Areas Development Commission with the intent of causing the British High Commission to issue a UK visa to Nosa Ohenhen Ericson.
                                            

One of the charges reads:
“That you, Nosa Ohenhen Ericson and Abraham Adasah sometime in April 2014 in Abuja, in the Abuja Judicial Division of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory did fraudulently use as genuine a forged Diamond bank statement of account bearing account name Nosa Ohenhen and account number 0025683395 by presenting it to the British High Commission, knowing it to be forged and thereby committed an offense punishable under Section 366 of the Penal Code Act Cap.532 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (Abuja) 1990”.

The accused pleaded not guilty when the charge was read to them.

Counsel to the EFCC, E.V Dalyop, urged the court to fix a date for hearing and remand the accused persons in prison custody.

However, counsel to the first accused, J. E Yahaya, through an oral application pleaded with the court to admit his client, to bail.

Yahaya argued that, the charge preferred against the first accused is not a capital offence and that Section 36 Sub-Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution guaranteed his bail.

Arguing in the same vein, counsel to the second accused, Olusegun Toki also cited Section 6, 35 and 36 of the Constitution and section 162 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act to demand the bail of his client.

Toki urged the court to grant him bail on liberal terms adding that, he had always honoured the invitation of the EFCC.

Justice Kekemeke admitted the accused persons to bail in the sum of N10, 000, 000.00 (ten million naira) each and two sureties each in like sum.

The sureties must be civil servants or individuals with landed property in Abuja.

The case has been adjourned to October 29, 2015 for hearing.

A 42-year-old man, Rafiu Olusamokun, is currently in the custody of the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly producing fake foreign and local currencies, which allegedly run into millions of naira.

Our correspondent learnt that Olusamokun, an indigene of Owo, Ondo State, was arrested by the police in his house at Ayidolapo Street, in the Ikotun area of the state.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the suspect, who was a motor mechanic before allegedly venturing into production of fake currencies, worked with some people who were still at large.

It was learnt that the police recovered an iron box full of fake dollars, pounds and naira notes from Olusamokun. Some materials such as cotton wool, paints and oil, allegedly used in the production of the money, were also recovered by the police.

Speaking with PUNCH Metro, the suspect said he was introduced into the business by some men who claimed to have newly returned from Europe.

Olusamokun said the men brainwashed him and forced him to pay about N600,000 to purchase the materials to produce the fake currencies.

He said, “I met those people early this year. I was working as a motor mechanic, and I just ran into them. They said they recently returned from Europe.

When I visited them at a hotel in the Bar Beach, Victoria Island area, they brought out the samples of the currencies they had, and said I could produce same if I wanted to become wealthy.

I was immediately interested. A friend, Sule Sulaimon, who went with me, also became interested. Their leader said all I needed to do was to purchase the chemicals from them. He said I should bring N1m, but I eventually paid N650,000 for the chemicals.

“I did not know the samples they gave me were fake; the papers looked so original. I first gave him N400,000, and then N250,000. He said I could reproduce as much hard currencies as I wanted from the materials I had.

“The currencies recovered from my house runs into millions, but I was not through with the reproduction. If I had finished with it, I would have been a wealthy man. I would have evaded the arrest.”

A police source told our correspondent that Olusamokun was to give part of the money reproduced to the syndicate, so that he could be given more materials. He added that the police were still on the trail of the group.

“The syndicate gave him the materials and the currencies to wash into original. The money is actually worth millions. He was producing €100 and €200 and pounds. The police found the fake cash in his house,” he said.

The Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, said the suspect would be charged to court as soon as investigations were over.

“The police will continue to ensure that we reduce crimes to the barest minimum in the state,” he added.

A middle aged woman, Gloria Sule, has been allegedly duped by a fake spiritualist, Francis Kalu, after she allegedly paid N2.1m to him to prepare charms for her to become famous in the Nigerian movie industry. The incident, which happened in Lagos State, western Nigeria, has pitched Gloria against Kalu after the charms failed.

Apart from allegedly defrauding her, Kalu invaded her privacy by stripping and bathing her under the false pretence of empowering her spiritually.

Trouble started after Gloria discovered that she had been duped.

When she requested for the refund of her money, Kalu refused and the police had to be contacted to wade into the matter.

According Gloria, she was introduced to Kalu whose shrine is located at Abule Ado area of Lagos.

During the encounter, Kalu asked her to request what she wanted to achieve in life and she told him that she needed spiritual empowerment to become a popular movie star.

Kalu promised to fulfill her dream and told her that she would pay the amount and thereafter she would embark on spiritual exercise to equip her.

He told her the rituals involved him stripping and bathing her with some spiritual materials which she agreed after paying the money.

To convince her, Kalu gave her a time frame when she would accomplish her desire.

Gloria waited in vain as all the promises failed and the police had to be invited to arrest Kalu. After investigation, he was charged to Ejigbo Magistrate’s court.

The police at Area ‘M’ Command, Idimu, that arrested Kalu charged him with breach of contract, invading her privacy, fraud and stealing under the Criminal Code.

When Kalu was arraigned in court, he pleaded not guilty.

The presiding Magistrate, Mrs J.O.E. Adeyemi granted him bail with two sureties in like sum

He was remanded in prison custody at Kirikiri pending when he would fulfill his bail condition.

The matter was adjourned till 21 September, 2015.

A 26-year-old man, Aloa Akojime was on Tuesday arraigned before a Lagos Magistrate Court in Igbosere for allegedly impersonating a Deputy Comptroller General of Customs.

Akojime is standing trial on a four count charge of conspiracy, fraud and impersonation under Sections 409, 312, 285 and 378 ‎ of the Criminal Laws of Lagos, 2011. According to the DAILY POST. 

The accused presented himself as the Customs Comptroller, Peter Akande ‎on August 12, while attempting to defraud a job seeker, Samuel Eze.

He obtained the sum of N33, 300 from Eze under the pretence of securing a job for him with the Nigerian Customs Service.

Prosecuting police officer, Inspector Haruna Ibrahim told the court that Akojime also advertises and auctions vehicles using Customs as an attempt to defraud people.

Ibrahim told the court that the defendant aside the money obtained from Eze, had defrauded others under the guise of obtaining recruitment forms into the service.

Akojime, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The presiding Magistrate, F.F. George consequently granted the accused bail in the sum of N50, 000 with two responsible sureties in like sum.

George adjourned the case till October 2, for mention.

Many people are living fake, it takes proper home training and values for you to work and make your money legitimately. Those of us who are making out money from our businesses, we sleep well. Smile!

36-year-old Godwin Nwaofor kept a ‘suckers list’ of potential victims to send bogus letters saying they had won the Lottery. The Nigerian bad boy received around £1million from the scam and blew the money on luxury cars, gold jewellery and expensive champagne at top nightclubs in London.

Nwaofor was a ‘willing and enthusiastic lieutenant’ to the mastermind of the scam.

who is also a Nigerian, Frank Onyechonam, who is nicknamed ‘Fizzy’ for his love of vintage champagne.

Onyeachonam was jailed eight years last year, after he was exposed as the chief player in the scam.

He drove a Maserati and fired bubbly corks across exclusive private members clubs as he lived a life of fantastic luxury on his victim’s life savings.

The scam started with a bogus letter to a vulnerable pensioner telling them they won Australian Lottery.

The letters were sent by a ‘lottery agent’ targeting mainly American pensioners informing them they had won a life-changing prize and requesting a modest sum to release the funds.

Believing they had won, victims were hooked into paying fees to release their ‘winnings’ through an agent who would demand ‘activation fees’ to release their cash.

In some cases, dupes set up businesses in an attempt to receive their winnings and became unwitting money mules laundering cash from other victims.

Nwaofor, a father of two, regularly switched addresses to avoid being caught.

One victim, a 76-year-old woman, who believed she had won $1.85m, tried to track down Nwaofor after the FBI told her she had fallen victim to a scam.

She flew to the UK and went to the address she had for Nwaofor, but found that he had already moved on to another address.

Police identified 406 victims from notebooks found at Onyeachonam’s penthouse when he was arrested.

They seized Louis Vuitton shoes, Gucci handbags, a collection of expensive watches and dozens of designer shoes, as well as 5,000 pictures of Onyeachonam flaunting his wealth at exclusive upmarket venues including the Guvnor Bar in Docklands, east London.

One picture shows him showering a friend with champagne, in others he poses with scantily clad blondes or waves wads of £50 notes. All the property he acquired through fraud have been confiscated.

Now he is cooling his butt in prison, all the overnight big boy has expired. Fraud can’t take anyone far.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has arrested the Vice Chancellor of the Adamawa State University, Shall David Joshua for selling a N13 million government-owned Toyota Land Cruiser as scrap.

He was arrested on Monday, August 31, alongside the bursar, K.E. Anjili and other top officials of the University.

On August 6, report surfaced that a former corps marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission, Haladu Hananiya, paid N150,000 for a new Toyota Land Cruiser SUV worth N13 million.

The arrest was confirmed by the commission’s spokesperson, Wilson Uwujaren.

“Our operatives in Yola, Adamawa State today arrested top officials of the Adamawa State University for questioning over the sale of a brand new Toyota Land Cruiser jeep as scrap to the former FRSC boss, Haladu Hananiya,” he said.

Details on Premium Times.

The Imo State Command of the Civil Defence Corps has busted a syndicate that specialise in oil bunkering and adulteration of petroleum products.
Gov Rochas Okorocha commended the Corps for their diligence and called on economic saboteurs to cease forthwith.

Tragedy struck on Wednesday in Delta State as a tanker conductor who attempted to steal diesel from a stationed tanker in a filling station, along Asaba-Onitsha express way lost his life in the process.

The tanker driver was alleged to have gone inside the tanker with his Jerri cans, but unfortunately could not make it out alive as he was suffocated to death.

It was learnt that it took the intervention of officials of the Delta State Fire Service who cut open a part of the tanker and brought the deceased out of the tank, dead.

A twitter user, Sageer Tafawa-BaLewa has released photos of vehicles allegedly recovered by the present Bauchi State Governor from his predecessor, Mallam Isa Yuguda.

Some days ago, reports made it known that Bauchi state government recovered seven plots of land which were illegally allocated by the Isa Yuguda administration. The chairman of the state’s recovery committee, Ahmed Tijani Baba, who made this disclosure, alleged that the illegal allocations were made by some officials of the Ministry of Lands and Housing without the necessary documents.

“The recovery committee so far has recovered seven plots of lands belonging to the state government. Among the land is one that is along Gombe road, that is the Nitel zonal office which is worth over 650 million naira.

“The second land the committee recovered is the Bauchi RATTAU secretariat which is along bauchi/jos road which is 1.6 hectares of land. We recovered lands of the Bauchi Radio Cooperation land, former BACAS Bauchi College of Arts and Science”BSADP Bauchi state Agricultural Development Programme which was illegally allocated to individuals for residential purposes.

“The committee also recovered the land belonging to the Bauchi State Television BATV which is 1.9 hectares of land. The land is not supposed to be allocated to anybody because there is telecommunication mast sited in the area that can pose a threat to the health of individuals living there.

“We recovered another land in Railway area where a lot of industries are cited, but instead of using the land for what it was meant for, it was sold out to individuals for residential purposes,” Ahmed Tijani Baba was quoted to have said.

A young man who pretended to be a woman and worked as a housemaid for eight months was arrested.
A criminal, whose name is unknown, managed to gull his employees for more than half a year, pretending to be a woman. The family who gave him a work did not even imagine what kind of person was living with them and taking care of their children, including small daughters.

A criminal managed to gull his employees for more than half a year
The man’s inventive disguise was finally uncovered only after he was arrested by police on suspicion of stealing. The information abouth the crime reacherd the Twitter, where one of the users, Trebble_D, shared some details of the incident, alerting other parents and those who are searching for domestic servants.

And although the incident happened in Lilongwe, the Republic of Malawi, and the man was charged with identity fraud, steeaing personal property, and obtaining work by deception, it should serve as a warning for those who are ready to let strangers in their houses and families.

A member of a syndicate suspected to be vandalising pipelines of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Jamiu Ajani, yesterday, disclosed that he did not know selling petrol obtained from the act of vandalism amounted to a crime, Vanguard reports.

Ajani and his accomplices, Demola Lawrence and Raymond, were caught with 300 units of 50 litre jerry cans filled with Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, by operatives of the Inspector General of Police Special Task Force on Pipeline Vandalism.

According to Ajani, “I used to sell building materials at Ketu before venturing into this business. It was some of my customers from Ikorodu that got me into the business.

“I discovered that they were making more money than I. So I begged them to show me the way. They said I could not go into the creeks because I do not know how to swim, but I could always buy and sell the products to people who need it.

“I was introduced to some buyers at Ijora and some other parts of Lagos State. I buy a 50-litre jerry can for N2, 000 and I sell it for N4, 000.

“On my first job one month ago, I bought 250 50-litre jerry cans for N500, 000 from an Ijaw woman, known as Mama Bose, and I sold them for N1, 000,000.

“The second job was just last week and I bought 150 jerry cans of 50 litres for N300, 000. My biggest job was the one that led to my arrest. I bought 300 jerry cans from Mama Bose for N600, 000 and I was hoping to make a profit of over N600, 000.

“My boy, Damilola, the driver of the truck we were using and I were intercepted by police on our way to supply the products to a buyer. I did not know selling petrol from vandalised pipelines was a crime.”

According to the report, the syndicate was intercepted by the task force at Owode area of Ikorodu in a Chevrolet truck, while transporting the stolen products to buyers in various parts of Lagos State.

Speaking on the arrest, the commander of the task force, Olumese Valentine, said members of the syndicate operate within Ikorodu area of the state.

He said: “This syndicate is the main reason vandals are still operating at Arepo. They are the ones receiving the products from the vandals and then sell to those who would sell to end users.

“It is a large syndicate with lots of people involved. I received a tip-off and directed the Lagos Sector Commander of the task force, ASP Akelere Adetayo, to track them down. If we do not clamp down on this syndicate, the vandals will always remain in businesses.”

Valentine added that the suspects would be charged to court at the completion of investigation.

A pastor in the headquarters of Mountain of Fire Ministry, Mrs. Joy Tongo, has been charged before the Isolo Magistrates’ court and remanded in prison for allegedly engaging in a visa scandal. According to PM News, Tongo, 35, defrauded one Stanley Dim, after promising him she will help him secure Chinese visa for a missionary journey.

Narrating his ordeal in the hands of the pastor, Dim said Tongo promised to help him get across to her partner in China and thereafter, he could stay back in the Asian country.

He further revealed that he paid a sum of 300,000 as requested by the pastor, who then promised to get back to him when his documents are ready

Tongo however failed to deliver the visa on the day she promised Dim he will get it. The travel period also elapsed and she didn’t provide an alternative arrangement for Dim’s proposed trip.

When contacted, Tongo allegedly told Dim that the journey had been postponed till another date. After waiting for a while, Dim demanded for his money back which Tongo refused to pay. Her excuse was that she had used the money to obtain forms for his travel documents.

Dim then reported at Alakara police division after which Tongo was arrested and charged to court. She was charged with obtaining under false pretence and stealing under the Criminal Code.

She denied the charges against her and pleaded not guilty. The presiding Magistrate, Mrs Joy Ugbomoiko, granted her bail in the sum of N100,000 with two sureties in like sum. Tongo was however remanded in custody until she meets her bail conditions. The matter was adjourned till 5 September, 2015.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has alerted the public, especially contractors in the global oil and gas sector, on activities of internet fraudsters peddling phantom contracts.
This is contained in a statement by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, NNPC, Mr Ohi Alegbe, in Abuja.

According to the statement, internet fraudsters have created a “phony Facebook account” for its new Group Managing Director, Dr. Emmanuel Kachikwu, to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians.

It stated that the Facebook account, bearing the photograph and name of the Group Managing Director (GMD), was created by some faceless internet fraudsters.

It noted with concern that the fraudster were exploiting the personae and the office of the new GMD to defraud the public.

The statement explained that the fraudsters had been using the fake Facebook page to send all manners of scam letters and phantom contract deals.

It added that the scammers were also using the same means for “cash solicitations to some highly placed contractors within and outside the oil and gas industry”.

It expressed the determination of the corporation to arrest the menace by all means.

The group general manager urged the public to disregard the page purportedly belonging to the GMD of NNPC as he had no Facebook account. (NAN)