Police operatives in Lagos State have arrested a man, Chimereze Chinedu, for allegedly defrauding a Thai national of $216,000 and an additional N30 million.
In a statement released on Tuesday via his X handle, the state’s Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, revealed that the suspect had promised to supply his victim with 37 tricycles valued at $216,000.
To further extort money, the suspect allegedly forged letters from the State Criminal Investigation Department, deceiving the victim into believing that the tricycles had been seized by the police.
According to Hundeyin, the suspect allegedly used the forged documents to obtain another sum of N30m from the victim to secure the release of the seized tricycles.
“Chimereze defrauded his victim under the pretence of selling 37 tricycles to her. He further expanded his fraudulent activity by forging letters of the State Criminal Investigative Department, Lagos showing that the tricycles were seized by the police and further extorted N30m from the victim to purportedly secure the release of the tricycles,” the police spokesman said.
The state police command stated that the “suspect was arrested on May 10, 2024, in Enugu State” after weeks of investigation and collaboration with officials from the International Criminal Police Organization.
The police spokesperson added that efforts are ongoing to apprehend other accomplices, emphasizing the command’s commitment to combating internet fraud.
POLICE ARREST SUSPECT FOR DEFRAUDING THAI CITIZEN OF $216,000 AND N30M
Detectives of the State Criminal Investigative Department (SCID), Lagos State Police Command, have arrested one Chimereze Chinedu ‘m’ for defrauding a citizen of Thailand of the sum of Two Hundred and… pic.twitter.com/IJ52toXock
— SP Benjamin Hundeyin (@BenHundeyin) May 21, 2024