By Suleiman Adamu, Sokoto
Sokoto Zonal Office operatives of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) says it has intercepted three suspected fraudsters over alleged N3.5bn internet scam in Sokoto, seat of the caliphate.
Confirming the arrest made by the commission to newsmen Thursday , the agency’s Zonal Head, Bawa Usman Kaltungo said the break-through was sequel to a complaint it received from a leading financial institution, the United Bank for Africa(UBA) on 28 of October , 2020 on an account in the name of annexation Business Concept opened by one Sunday Markus with a turnover of N3.525m within six months .
Bawa said following thorough investigation that took the commission’s officials 9 months which it eventually discovered the operations of he account was at variance with the set or stipulated objectives of the company which is ” General Merchandise/General Contract”
This, Bawa said ” the company used to lure innocent and unsuspecting public with mouth watering returns on investment which was too good to be good.”
According to the Zonal Head of Operations ” upon investigation into the company’s activities , we discovered that the leading and architect of the Ponzi scheme are one Benson Kurfe and one Iraboh Joseph Eseosa”, as Bawa disclosed that the two leading suspects engaged Sunday Markus to register with the CAC and open the bank account with a fictitious addresses and unregistered phone number.
Accordingly, the commission’s top Official revealed information on other accounts linked with the fraudsters activities which included Guarantee Trust Bank GTB , Zenith Bank, and a Parkway Ready cash account also opened by Sunday Markus but operated by Benson Kurfe and Joseph Iraboh.
” Our investigation has authenticated and discovered that Benson Kurfe and Joseph Iraboh are the initiatiors and operators of the fraudulent double interest investment Ponzi scheme called annexation Biz Concept, however the the suspects decided to hide their identities by using that of Sunday Markus to register the company with CAC”, Bawa reconfirmed.
Hitherto, the commission noted that ” the Annexation Business Concept, is no doubt a pyramid Ponzi investment scheme promising unsuspected members of the public a high and unrealistic returns on investment (ROI) of 30, 60 and 200 percent to investors.
” The suspected fraudsters deceived their victims and made them believed that the funds would be used to trade in forex and crypto currency”, he stressed.
He also noted that the suspects used the proceed to acquire properties , cars worth millions of naira and fat bank accounts in their favour.
Bawa , however, warned the public to shine their eyes against allowing themselves falling into the cage of fraudsters in their quest for embracing the getting rich quick syndrome.
