……..Police begin clampdown on touts, extortionists
The Rivers State Police Command has disclosed that its operatives have apprehended a man identified as Precious Frank who specialises in defrauding Point of Sale (POS) operators in Port Harcourt City Local Council and environs.
This was even as the Lagos State Police Command yesterday announced that it has set up an enforcement team with the mandate to raid spots that have been identified as notorious in extorting truck drivers and other motorists.
The Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Emake Nwonyi, while parading Frank alongside other suspects at the Command’s headquarters, said luck ran against the suspect who hails from Bakana community in Degema Local Council of the state on Tuesday, August 1, this year, after a victim, Wale Alabi, laid a complaint to the Borikiri Police Division that the suspect swindled him of N100, 000 with a fake transfer.
Nwoyi said: “Following a complaint from one Wale Alabi ‘M’ of Pepple Avenue UPE Borikiri, Police operatives from the command arrested one Precious Frank ‘M,’ of Bakana Community Degema LGA, Rivers State.
“The suspect specialised in generating fake alerts from the app, and uses the same to defraud innocent POS operators and shopkeepers.
“Luck ran against him as he cleverly went to the complainant’s shop, did a transaction of N100, 000 and generated a fake alert message, and immediately disappeared from the area.
“On receiving the complaint, a thorough and diligent investigation was carried out, which led to the arrest of the suspect and the unravelling of the techniques adopted by the fraudsters to defraud the unsuspecting victims.”
CP Nwonyi further added that the suspect has given detailed information that would lead to the arrest of other members of the gang.
“The fake App will always display successful transactions to confuse their victims without remitting the money to the victim’s account. Pragmatic efforts are being put into ensuring that other culprits are also arrested,” he said.
However, the suspect said it was his first time indulging in such a crime.
He explained that he downloaded a prank bank Application where he entered the bank details of his victim and sent a fake alert.
He said: “I did a fake transfer to the POS account. I use an App. You will put the account number and the amount and send it. The person will get a prompt but there is no money.
This is my first time. I feel embarrassed and I would like to tell youths that crime is not good,” he confessed.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa, said the Command set up the enforcement team following reports of extortion of truck drivers and other motorists by thugs and recalcitrant law enforcement officers.
The enforcement team is led by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) and comprises tactical teams and provost officers from the state headquarters. The team was at the Mile 2 area of the state, a hotbed for extortionists, last Friday.
According to the state police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, a total of 15 thugs were arrested in the act while three police officers, one FRSC and one LASTMA personnel were also arrested for being in cahoots with the touts.
“CP Owohunwa hereby warns that any law enforcement personnel, irrespective of agency, found complicit in these extortion racketeering would not be spared as they would be apprehended and dealt with in accordance with the law,” Hundeyin added in a statement.”
