The Police Command in Rivers State has apprehended two male suspects accused of defrauding a Canada-based Nigerian woman, Sandra Austin, of N140 million through an elaborate social media scam.
SP Grace Iringe-Koko, the command’s spokesperson, disclosed the details of the case to journalists in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.
She revealed that the suspects manipulated Austin after she accepted a Facebook friend request from an account bearing the name ‘Engineer Desmond Chibuike Okechukwu.’
Iringe-Koko recounted how the victim, initially hesitant, eventually accepted the friend request in February 2022.
“The individual behind the account claimed to be a construction engineer with an impressive portfolio of luxurious homes allegedly built for clients.
“The fraudster shared images of high-end properties in Ajah, Lagos, which he claimed to have constructed.
“Sandra expressed interest in one of the properties, and the scammer told her it would cost N150 million to purchase land and complete the development,” she said.
Believing the fraudster’s claims, Austin began transferring funds to the bank account provided by him.
“By February 2024, she had sent a total of N110m, and later transferred the final payment of N30m.
“Shortly after receiving the last instalment, the scammer blocked all communication channels with her,” Iringe-Koko added.
The police image maker revealed that the incident left Austin traumatised, and unable to contact the fraudster, she developed hypertension and was hospitalised for a prolonged period.
She further said that the scammer later added to her distress by threatening to kill her family members if she reported the matter to the authorities.
Once she recovered, Iringe-Koko said that Austin contacted her family in Nigeria, who reported the case to the police.
“Following the report, police operatives launched an investigation using intelligence-led techniques to apprehend 29-year-old Michael Onyedikachi, a native of Nkanu West, Enugu, about 7p.m. on August 24.
“Onyedikachi was found living in a three-bedroom bungalow in Ama-Okponike, Enugu, financed by his fraudulent activities.
“The suspect confessed to operating the Facebook account and sending images of houses to deceive the victim into believing progress was being made on her property,” she said.
Iringe-Koko said during the raid that officers discovered a shrine in his apartment, believed to have been used for ritual purposes.
She said that Onyedikachi also confessed to having spent eight months in Accra, Ghana, to learn online fraud techniques.
The police spokesperson said that Onyedikachi mentioned a 29-year-old accomplice, Akachukwu Benedict, from Ngo-Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State.
“Officers later arrested Benedict in a luxurious hotel in Enugu, where he had booked a suite for an entire year.
“Benedict admitted to introducing Onyedikachi to online fraud in 2022 and confessed to scamming an American woman named Molissa of 600 US dollars in 2021,” Iringe-Koko said.
She said the suspects revealed in their statements that they acquired cloned SIM cards through a dealer, who remains at large.
She disclosed that payments from their victims were received via cryptocurrency wallets to evade detection by security agencies.
“Investigations revealed that the suspects relied heavily on social engineering and fake personas to manipulate their victims,” Iringe-Koko explained.
Items recovered from the suspects include a Toyota Corolla vehicle, land documents, laptop computers and mobile phones.
Iringe-Koko stated that the investigation was still in progress and assured that the suspects would face prosecution upon its conclusion.
She advised the public to exercise caution when interacting with unknown individuals online and report suspicious activity to law enforcement authorities.
