The Plateau State Police Command has arrested a suspected Point of Sale fraudster for allegedly swindling a PoS operator of ₦1.55m at Terminus Market.
In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Alfred Alabo, the Command said the suspect, 20-year-old Jonathan Sambo Bitrus from Bauchi State, was arrested after the incident.
According to the statement, the victim, Miss Josephine Morolayo, said the suspect came to the shop where she works as a PoS salesgirl at Terminus Market and asked to check his account balance.
The statement added that he later requested to withdraw ₦1.95m, after which the victim processed the transaction and handed him the machine to enter his PIN.
“She proceeded to give him the sum of One Million Five Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (#1,550,000.00k) and pleaded with him to wait for her boss to return from the mosque for the balance of Four Hundred Thousand Naira (#400,000.00.00k),” the statement said.
It added that when her boss returned, she realised that “the receipt she saw was of a transaction she had made before the suspect’s arrival, and it dawned on her that she had been defrauded,” while the suspect had escaped with the money.
The Command said the suspect confessed during interrogation.
“He confessed that he accessed the victim’s transaction history when she handed him the machine to insert his PIN and upon discovering a previous transaction of One Million, Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (#1,950,000.00), he requested for the same amount to be withdrawn from his account which to the best of his knowledge was empty,” the statement said.
“He further revealed that in the course of withdrawing the funds, he cancelled the transaction.”
According to the statement, the suspect also admitted using the money to buy “an iPhone 13 Pro and clothing materials.”
The police said he remains in custody and will be charged in court soon.
The Command condemned the act and urged residents “to be vigilant and cautious when dealing with financial transactions,” while assuring the public of its resolve to tackle financial crimes in the state.
It also advised residents to report suspicious movements to the nearest police station or through the control room emergency numbers.