Two suspected fraudsters have been apprehended by Edo State Police Command officers who specialize in issuing phony bank credit alerts to local merchants after purchasing costly items in Benin City.
Rich Kelvin, 24, and Clinton Odiase, 19, were arrested on Thursday, March 17th, on St. Saviour Road, following credible intel.
The con artists went to a store on Benin’s Forestry Road and purchased an iPhone costing N700,000 and an unidentified phone worth N200,000.
Fraudsters posing as legitimate buyers demanded payment by bank transfer and requested the business’s bank account details.
After fabricating a fraudulent debit alert, Kevin and Odiase informed the businessman that the transfer would be delayed.
To prove their dubious transaction, the con artists showed the businessman a debit transaction on his bank account.
The victim, who requested anonymity for security reasons, describing the incident, said, “I am really shocked how the two guys were able to manipulate their phones. I saw that the amount had been debited from their account. I later got to know after the bank confirmed to me that such an amount did not enter into my account. I want the police to thoroughly investigate these two men as they should be charged for stealing.”
According to one of the accused, “This is the second time I am doing this kind of a thing. I am a fashion designer at St saviour Road in Benin city, and my friend taught me how to issue a fake Bank credit alert to buy expensive items.”
SP Bello Kontongs, the command’s spokesperson, confirmed the arrest and stated that the two suspects will be profiled to see if there were any other dealers who had fallen for the two suspects’ shenanigans.
