Operatives of the Nigeria Police in Enugu State have arrested three suspects, including a banker, for allegedly stealing N4 million from a bank customer by forging his account details.
The command Spokesman, DSP Daniel Ndukwe, told journalists on Friday in Enugu, that the suspects allegedly forged the bank identity of an Australia-based Nigerian to steal N4 million from his account.
Ndukwe said that the suspects, names withheld, included a staff of an Enugu branch of a commercial bank.
He said that the suspects withdrew over N4 million from the victim’s bank account through fraudulent means.
He said that the suspects were arrested when the management of the bank found the fraud and promptly reported to the police.
According to Ndukwe, the first suspect, who was arrested, allegedly confessed that he found a bag in October, 2023, at Nowas Junction in Trans-Ekulu, Enugu, which contained personal items, including several SIM cards.
The suspect told the police that in January 2024, he inserted one of the SIM cards into his phone and received a large credit alert.
According to the police, the suspect began to withdraw money from the victim’s account using the USSD banking code.
Ndukwe said in September 2024, the suspect faced difficulties accessing the account and he visited the commercial bank branch in Enugu.
“There, he colluded with an employee of the bank with 17 years of service, who informed him that the account was on: Post No Debit Status.
“The bank employee ask the first suspect to obtain a court affidavit and modify his National Identification Number (NIN) details to match those of the account’s legitimate owner to gain access to the account,” he said.
Ndukwe said the first suspect approached an NIN enrolment agent, who unlawfully changed the suspect name, date of birth, and other personal details on his NIN to match those of the victim’s details without questioning his intentions.
The police spokesman said the first suspect gave the agent N40,000 for the services.
“With this altered information, the first suspect facilitated the fraudulent reactivation of the victim’s account, bypassing verification checks, including the Bank Verification Number (BVN) link.
“After reactivating the account, the first suspect immediately withdrew N100,000 and gave the bank staff N50,000 as a payment for his role.
“He later withdrew an additional N1.5 million, which triggered an alert from the bank’s Ohafia, Abia State branch, where the account was originally opened.
“This led to the detection of the fraud and the bank management in Enugu reported the case to the police,” Ndukwe said.
Ndukwe said that when the first suspect reported for another withdrawal on Oct.18, he was arrested, along with the bank staff while NIN agent was later arrested.
Reacting, the state’s Commissioner of Police, Mr Kanayo Uzuegbu, appreciated the bank for its cooperation in exposing the fraudulent act.
Uzuegbu also urged the public to exercise caution in managing personal sensitive items to prevent falling victim to similar crimes. (NAN).
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