6th January, 2024
By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja
The Police have arrested an alleged fake doctor Igwe Gift Okechukwu for duping one Anita Chinwe Mathias, a POS operator in Owerri, Imo State, of the sum of N21 million.
While parading the suspect in Abuja on Friday, Force spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi said he is also being investigated for criminal conspiracy, organ trafficking fraud, cybercrime, stealing, impersonation, deceit cheating and identity theft.
According to the police spokesperson, the arrest of Okechukwu followed a report to the Force Criminal Investigation Department by Mathias of how Igwe Okechukwu duped her of the N21 million by tricking her into entering a code into her POS machine.
Okechukwu, according to police had introduced himself to Mathias as Dr. Henry Ovie, a neurologist newly transferred from Port Harcourt to FMC, Owerri and that he was expecting he was expecting some money and he would want to make use of her POS to collect it.
Indeed, to convince Mathias that he was genuine, he sent N5.5 million to her account. But this was a decoy for the fraud the fake medical practitioner wanted to perpetrate as was later discovered.
Adejobi said the suspect had introduced himself to the POS operator when they met at a shopping mall in Owerri as Dr Henry Ovie, a neurologist newly transferred from Port Harcourt to FMC, Owerri.
“She stated further that Igwe collected her number and established a close relationship with her. He told her that he was expecting some money and that he would love to make use of her POS to collect the money.
“The suspect then sent the amount of Five Million Five Hundred Thousand Naira (#5,500,000) to her account, which made her believe that the suspect has a genuine source of income.
“She proceeded to state that on 11th September, 2023 the suspect tricked her into entering a code on her POS machine which she did due to the trust she had for him.
“After the suspect left her place, she noticed that all the money in her POS account was withdrawn, which amounted to the sum of Twenty-One Million Naira (#21,000,000) and all efforts to reach out to the suspect proved abortive.
“She also went to Federal Medical Center, where the suspect claimed to be working, to ask about him and she was told that none of their doctors bears such a name.
“Immediately, she reported the case to the Force Criminal Investigation Department Abuja, where intelligent officers swung into action to arrest the suspect.
Gift Okchukwu subsequently changed his phone number, and relocated from Owerri to Lafia in Nasarawa State, where he rented and furnished an apartment. But he was tracked and arrested there by police operatives.
“Further investigations revealed that the suspect goes by different names such as Igwe Richard, Ovie Henry with multiple phone numbers and emails that he uses to perpetrate his heinous acts,” police said in the statement.
The Police spokesperson added that the investigations revealed Okechukwuʼs identity was not documented on the National Identity Management Commission portal, neither was his information in any Nigeria Information Database.
He said it was discovered that Igwe Okechukwu was also involved in organ trafficking and that he has a contact in Toronto, Canada with whom he engages in the trade of human organs after he was arrested.