POLICE have arrested four suspected fraudsters who allegedly duped candidates sitting for this yera’s West African Senior School Certificate Examination, WASSCE, examinations. The Police paraded the suspects at the Force Headquarters, Abuja on Friday, June 2.

The suspects include Chijoke Onwuachu Modestus, a 300 level student of Computer Science Micheal Okpara University, Umudike. He was arrested at Umuiahia and confessed to have collected ₦400 per paper from numerous candidates, to the tune of N70,000; Samuel Odinaka Onwurah, 20, who was arrested at Kutunku extension layout in Gwagwalada, Abuja. He had made N90,000 from various victims before his arrest; Patrick Uchechukwu Nwodo, 30, was trailed and picked up at Abakpa, Nike in Enugu. He too had collected the sum of N40,000 from unsuspecting victims, before his arrest and Okon Effiong Joseph, 20, a 200 level student of Public Health Department University of Calabar. He was arrested at Calabar, having made N120,000 from different candidates

The suspects were arrested following a tip-off from the authorities of the West African Examination Council, WAEC, who noticed that some persons were operating rogue websites under different names. The illegal websites were lure candidates sitting for the WASSCE examinations which held throughout Nigeria and indeed, in the other four member countries of the Council, namely; Ghana, Sierra-Leon, Liberia and the Gambia, between 20th February 20 and May 12, 2017.

Jimoh Moshood, a chief superintendent of Police and the force public relations officer, who addressed the press, said: “At the commencement of the examination, the Council observed that some individuals were operating criminally inclined “rouge’ websites, under different names, soliciting for candidates sitting the examination, to pay money into their bank accounts, in exchange for the provision of worked solutions/answers to questions of subjects being taken on any particular day as the examination was in progress.

“Consequently, upon receipt of a petition by the authorities of West African Examination Council, WAEC, alleging that some fraudsters were operating illegal websites under different names soliciting for candidates in the February/May 2017 West African Examination Council, WAEC, to pay certain amount of money into bank account in exchange for posting of worked solutions and answers via whatsapp at about 20 or 30 minutes into the commencement of each paper and in the process fraudulently and dubiously dispossessed their unsuspecting victims of their hard earned money.

“Against this background, personnel of the inspector general of Police Monitoring Unit swung into action, after painstaking and meticulous investigation that spanned several weeks arrested the above mentioned suspects.”

Moshood said that the suspects would soon be charged to court, while effort would be intensified to arrest others at large.  The boss said that the IGP was concerned with the rise on incidences of cybercrime and had put to in place effective machinery to put an end to it. Nevertheless, he appealed to members of the public of the force’s determination to stamp out criminality throughout the country.

“Parents and Guardians are advised to prevail on their children and wards not to patronise these rogues’ websites,” Moshood said.

—  Jun 12, 2017 @ 01:00 GMT