Police officers attached to the Zone 2 Police Command in Lagos have been accused of demanding N350,000 from a fraud victim before investigating an online scam that cost her N429,000.
Policemen at the Zone 2 Police Command in Lagos State have allegedly demanded a N350,000 payment to investigate an internet fraud case involving a Lagos resident, Funmilola Onabanjo (not her real name). Onabanjo told FIJ that she attempted to file a petition at the command in late January but was discouraged by officers who said filing the petition alone would cost N50,000, while pursuing the case fully would require about N350,000. “They said that if I truly want to pursue the case, I would spend about N350,000 in total. I just gave up because I don’t have any money to waste,” she said.
The incident followed an online scam that occurred on January 10, when Onabanjo came across an Instagram page, @usedhome_appliances, which presented itself as a decluttering platform. After engaging the page to purchase household appliances, she paid a total of N429,000, only to be blocked immediately afterward. “I was defrauded of N429,000, and my bank could not help me trace the money and block it. I felt so down when I got back from the bank two days later on a Monday,” she told FIJ.
According to Onabanjo, efforts to recover the funds through her bank proved futile, as Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) asked her to wait several days, while Zenith Bank, the receiving bank, said it could only act after formal communication from her bank. “Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) asked me to go and wait for another three days, while Zenith Bank, which was the receiving bank, said they can’t do anything until my bank reaches out, and if the money is still there by then, they will block it; else it’s gone,” she said.
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