FSARS Arrests 4 for purchasing N 9.8m goods with fake bank alert

Paul Iyoghojie

Operatives of the Federal Special Anti-robbery Squad, FSARS at Adeniji Adele Road, Lagos Island, Lagos have arrested four men who allegedly connived with two others still at large to purchase 1,100 cantons of vegetable power oil valued N9,880,000 from the Management of Multi-purpose Consumer Product Ltd with fake bank alert and escaped.

A police source said that the arrest of the suspects was made possible by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, DCP in charge of FSARS, Mr. Ibrahim Kaoje following a complaint by the management of Multi-purpose Consumer Ltd.

The suspects are Genesis John, 39; Alabi Dauda, 65, Shaibu Mohammed, 42 and Garuba Hashim, 37, who allegedly purchased the goods from Lai Mohammed for N4.6m. Others still at large, Honourable Lai Mohammed and Austin

Trouble started for the suspects in December, 2017 when the alleged Mohammed now at large went to the Multi-purpose Consumer Ltd office in Surulere, Lagos to purchase about 1,100 cantons of vegetable power oil valued at N9,880,000 to share to his customers as Christmas gifts.

The management of the company was alleged to have told Mohammed that they could only sell their goods to a customer who is not registered with them on cash and carry basis and that Mohammed agreed to pay for the goods in cash through bank transfer.

Police said that the management of the company later received a bank alert for the payment of the goods the following day from Mohammed but unknown to them that the bank alert was fake.

Based on the bank alert, the company released the goods to Mohammed without confirming if the bank alert payment they received from Mohammed for the payment of the goods was genuine.

Police said that when company went to the bank to access the money Mohammed claimed to have transferred into their account for the payment of the goods they released to him, they could not find any money in their account, and that was when it dawn on them that Mohammed had duped them.

Following the ugly development, the company reported the incident to the DCP Ibrahim Kaoje in charge of FSARS who directed a team led by DSP Olaniyi Festus to fish out the suspects and recover the goods.

After days of intelligence gathering, the operatives arrested one of the suspects, Genesis John in Lagos and he led detectives to arrest one of the suspects in Abuja and the two alleged buyer of the stolen goods in Kano State, while Lai Mohammed and Austin are still at large.

During investigation, according to the police, the two alleged buyers of the goods, Shaibu Mohammed and Garuba Hashin allegedly confessed to the crime that Mohammed sold the goods to them for N4.6m and that they did not know that the goods were stolen.

A police source said that the suspects would be charged to court after investigation of the matter.