The Katsina State Police Command has arrested five suspected members of a fraud syndicate allegedly involved in defrauding members of the public through fraudulent banking transactions.
The operation also led to the recovery of two vehicles, mobile phones, fake identity documents and N2 million in cash, while two bank accounts containing N19 million and N3 million were frozen, bringing the total value of suspected proceeds of crime under restriction to N22 million.
According to the police, the investigation began following a petition received on October 27 from a complainant who alleged that he entrusted N10 million to a 23-year-old suspect, Ahmed Abdulhakim, on October 10 to complete a business transaction.
However, Abdulhakim allegedly received the money into his personal account, absconded and converted the funds to his personal use.
Following his arrest, the suspect reportedly confessed to having links with a criminal network involved in fraudulent activities targeting unsuspecting members of the public.
Further investigations led detectives to a hotel allegedly being used as the syndicate’s operational base, where two other suspects, Abdulrahman Abdullahi, popularly known as Khaila, 24, and Mustapha Ayuba, 24, were arrested.
The hotel’s assistant manager, identified as Fahad Ahmad, was also arrested for allegedly harbouring the suspects and helping them evade security operatives.
Police investigations reportedly uncovered that the principal suspects operated multiple bank accounts using fraudulent Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) and National Identification Numbers (NINs).
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Abdulhakim allegedly possessed three BVNs and three NINs linked to 13 bank accounts, while Abdullahi and Ayuba reportedly had three BVNs and three NINs each, connected to six bank accounts.
The suspects also allegedly identified two other individuals, Saifullahi Idris and Umar Faruq Bala, as accomplices who assisted in generating fake BVN and NIN documents.
Items recovered included a Peugeot 206, a Mercedes-Benz C300, Samsung Fold, Redmi, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 13 mobile phones, nine NIN cards, nine BVN slips bearing fraudulent names, nine ATM cards, 14 SIM cards, 12 SIM packs and N2 million in cash.
The police further identified Aminu Nasir Dan-Rimi, the original complainant, and Surajo Sani Muhammad as alleged ringleaders of the syndicate. Both individuals are reportedly still at large.
The Katsina State Commissioner of Police, Ali Fage, commended the operatives for their efforts and reaffirmed the command’s commitment to combating financial and cybercrimes.
He also warned hotel owners and managers against providing accommodation or assistance to criminal elements and urged residents to report suspicious individuals and financial transactions to the police.
The command said efforts were ongoing to apprehend the fleeing suspects.
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