A 23-year-old student of the Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, Awoleye Joshua Oliwatofunmi, has been arrested by the state police command for allegedly swindling an African-American lady, Vonapolous Moss from the state of Indiana in America.
Awoleye, a suspected internet fraudster, allegedly lured the victim to Ilorin from America under the pretext of being an American citizen.
Parading the suspect in Ilorin on Friday at the state police command headquarters, the Police Commissioner, Paul Odama, disclosed that “preliminary investigation revealed that Awoleye, who is a suspected internet fraudster, presented himself to the victim on TikTok, a social media platform as an American by the name Howard Adams and ripped her of about 1,000 US dollars.
“The suspect later took a step further by luring the victim to fly into Nigeria on January 9,2023 through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, in Lagos, after which she flew into Ilorin the next day and was received by the suspect.”
The Police Commissioner, said the suspect also deceitfully took an unspecified amount of American dollars from the victim before she was rescued by police operatives of the state command.
Paul Odama revealed that the necessary authorities have been contacted for appropriate action, adding that”the rescued victim has been moved to secure custody by the state police command pending her return trip to the United States of America.”
The Police Commissioner vowed to ensure justice is served to serve as deterrent to would-be criminals in the internet fraud business which he lamented has dented the image of the country in the comity of nations globally.
Answering a question, Paul Odama assured that the matter will not be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
“The police also have the mandate to handle such matters and we will do a diligent prosecution to ensure that justice is served accordingly,” he declared.
