The three arrested suspects

Operatives  of  the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, Sokoto  Zonal  Office on  March 4,  2020 arrested  Zaharaddeen Ibrahim, Micheal Alabi and Ngozi Agbonjari all staff of a new generation bank in Sokoto for an alleged conspiracy to steal the sum of N1,205,000 (One million, two hundred and five thousand naira).

Describing the arrest as a huge success, Head of the Zone, Abdullahi Lawal noted that they were arrested for conspiracy to steal the said sum meant for Home Grown School Feeding Program, HGSFP, an initiative of the Federal Government of Nigeria for primary school pupils spread across the 23 local government areas of Sokoto State.

“The suspects were all staff of one of the new generation banks in Sokoto who allegedly conspired among themselves to issue Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card to an impostor in the name of bonafide customers of the bank in Sokoto State,” he said.

According to Lawal, the bankers, Ngozi Agbonjari Juliet and Michael Alabi issued the ATM cards in the name of Fatima Ahmad and Sadiya Bello, customers of the Bank who are contractors of the School Feeding Program and later transferred the N1,205,000  to the account of Zaharadeen Ibrahim who then withdrew the money through Point of Sale (POS) machine at Gwadabawa and Bodinga area of Sokoto.

They confessed to committing the crime. A total sum of N652,000.00 (Six Hundred and Fifty-Two Thousand Naira)being Ngozi and Michael’s shares have been recovered, while effort is being made to recover the remaining N553,000 from Zaharadeen Ibrahim.

In a related development, Lawal said the commission also has arrested one Abdulwahab Ibrahim Mayowa who allegedly transferred N47,000 from the account of Paulina Asogba .

Investigation reveals that Mayowa visited the complainant’s home where he took her phone and ATM card and fraudulently transferred the money by using the last six digit of her ATM card without her consent.

Also the commission arrested one Bello Matsala Umar who fraudulently collected the sum of N450,000 from one Abdulrahman Abdullahi, promising to sell a plot of land to him.

All efforts to trace the plot of land proved abortive, which made the buyer to petition the EFCC.

In the course of investigation the suspect confessed that he had no plot of land for sale and that he only duped the complainant.

The sum of N50,000 (Fifty Thousand) has been recovered from the suspect.

They will soon be arraigned in court.