365news gathered that Five individuals have been detained by Delta State police on suspicion of impersonating EFCC agents in order to scam members of the public.
According to a press release from the Delta State Police Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Edafe Bright, the police reacted in response to a number of complaints from the public, particularly from youths, who claimed that EFCC agents frequently break into their homes at night, arrest them forcibly, take them away, and demand a sizable sum of money from them.
The police acted right away, and information acquired suggested that they might not be EFCC agents after all.
On November 16, 2022, the Command received a second complaint from a victim (name withheld) who had been the victim of a nighttime home invasion by the syndicate. They had scaled the fence to get inside the facility, broken into his apartment, and taken him by force into a white Toyota Hiace bus.
The victim added that when they arrived at Head Bridge, which marks the border between Anambra and Delta States, they took his phones and other valuables worth N3,700,000 ($2,500,000) from him and forced him to make a cash transfer of N2,500,000 ($2,500,000). They also threatened to come after him again. Five other victims came forward to the Command and described how they were stolen of around 15 million naira in their statements (N15,000,000).
The police claim that it quickly became apparent that the actions were those of criminals posing as EFCC agents.
In order to conduct an investigation and ensure that the offenders are apprehended, Commissioner of Police Ari Muhammed Ali instructed the Command Decoy Squad.
The Commander, CP-Decoy, ASP Julius Robinson then led agents on a sting operation and pursued the suspects to their hiding in a hotel (name withheld) located in Asaba where they hibernated to plot their next operation on November 23,
Prince Allison, 29, the gang’s leader who claimed to be an EFCC contract employee in Portharcourt, George Chisom Onyeweagu, 29, of Owerri, who ran the POS used to forcibly withdraw money from the victim’s account, Duke Okoro, 40, of Asaba, Delta State, Joseph Osinachi, 23, of Lagos State, and Onyocha Stanley, 32, of Owerri were the other five suspects detained.
The suspects acknowledged robbing numerous people from various regions of the State. Additionally, they claimed that they kept some of their victims in hotels for days until they were able to extort large sums of money from them, primarily by having them transfer money into their mobile POS.
They turned up a white Hummer bus, two EFCC jackets made in the area, a POS system, and eight cell phones. Six of their victims have revealed that they are the group that broke into their homes while pretending to be EFCC agents.
The PPRO reports that the investigation is still ongoing and that the accused will shortly face charges in court.
