Akwa Ibom school proprietor arrested for alleged visa, scholarship fraud

By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja

A school proprietor identified as Mrs. Imaobong Cyril Okpong has been arrested for her alleged involvement in a series of visa fraud and fake offers of foreign scholarships schemes for nonexistent studies abroad.

The suspect who is the alleged proprietor of Michael Udonquak Schools , Mbierebe in Akwa Ibom State was arrested by operatives of the Uyo Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

She was arrested after one Dr. (Mrs.) Blessing Nse Bassey, a clinician, petitioned the EFCC about her activities, Dele Oyewale, spokesperson for the anti-graft agency said in a statement on Friday.

According to the statement, Bassey alleged that the suspect defrauded her of the sum of ₦3 million under the guise of securing a University admission for her and also processing Canadian visas for her and her husband.

According to Bassey, the suspect contacted her sometime in February 2024 with a supposed opportunity to secure a scholarship and study visa abroad.

She explained that she didn’t make any payment until the suspect signed an indemnity agreement, which she notarized before making the ₦3,000,000 electronic transfer into the suspect’s First Bank account

However, after receiving the payment, Okpong allegedly became unreachable and started rejecting calls on her mobile lines as she completely failed to deliver on her promise and terms of the signed agreement.

Bassey claimed that the suspect had defrauded many victims, especially one of her friends who got stranded in China after Opong gave her fake scholarship.

“I met in China who got stranded in China when she got there and realized that there was no scholarship. Some of her victims had travelled abroad with fake documents that left many of them stranded overseas while some others faced deportation with huge financial losses”

EFCC said the suspect will be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.