EFCC nabs 3 for impersonating Bayelsa Governor, NDDC MD

THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested three persons for allegedly impersonating Seriake Dickson, Governor of Bayelsa State and Nsima Where, Managing Director, Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC.

Two of the suspects Tasiu Ismail and Haruna Ismail were alleged to have cloned the Facebook account of the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), while the third suspect Rowland Chimezie was arrested for allegedly impersonating top government officials including Bayelsa State Governor, Hon Seriake Dickson and chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, Chief Felix Amaechi Obuah.

South-South Zonal Director of EFCC, Ishaq Salihu, announced the arrest yesterday in Port Harcourt while formally handing over six Access Bank Manager’s cheque worth N36.1 million to the proprietor of Jephthah International Secondary School, Port Harcourt, Ifeoma Edith Chukwuogo.

Salihu said, “We have gotten one Tasiu Ismail and Haruna Ismail, who cloned the Facebook page of Nsima Ekere, the Managing Director of NDDC, to lure gullible Nigerians into believing that they have jobs and should apply to get the jobs.

“We also, through a synergy with a sister security agency, got one Okunado Rowland Chimezie, who impersonate politicians. He cloned the facebook accounts of Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State and that of Brother Felix Obuah, the PDP chairman of Rivers State,  among others. They promised youths that they will grant them loans and in turn demand for huge amount of money from them.”

He explained that the bank drafts were to compensate Jephthah International School, following the defrauding of the school by its Accounting Officer and staff of Access Bank, one Cyril Amaechi Ndakoji.

The EFCC zonal director said, “The proprietress of Jephthah International School reported to her banker, Access Bank that some of her cheques cannot be cashed. In the evening of that day, Access Bank International, through their representative reported the matter to the EFCC to look into the matter.

“Investigators immediately swung into action, and the culprit, the principal suspect and his accomplices were arrested. The proceeds of the crime have been recovered substantially.

“We realised that he has built a one-three bedroom apartment and two two-bedroom apartments from the proceeds of his criminal activity. He is a marketer and Accounts Officer of Jephthah International School. He was literally robbing Peter to pay Paul. When the centre could not hold, the school realised that their cheques could not be honoured, reported back to the bank to find out what was happening.

“Earlier on, he had gotten one of his accomplices in the person of Oboma Chisom, who posed as a Customer Relations Officer of Access Bank to place a call to the Administrator of Jephthah International School, that she should tarry a while, that the bank is actually having some network problems and that her cheques will be honoured within a short period of time. Nothing could be further from the truth that the bank was never in any distress.

“To ensure that he completes his nefarious acts, he also got in touch with one Adebayo Aderin, who helped him in designing, printing letter-headed papers of another organisation where he is also the Account Officer. He took money from that organisation and now paid Jephthah’s proprietor as salary in honour of Jephthah International School.

“He was trying to balance two different accounts at the same time. We have gone for interim forfeiture in order to enable us seize the property he acquired with proceeds from the crime”, the EFCC Zonal Director stated.