A Facebook user identified as Loveday Ugochukwu, has been arrested after he defrauded policemen seeking promotion and peacekeeping programme. The suspect’s arrest came after he impersonated the Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, to defraud a contractor, Shuaibu Semion, of N800,000. The 31-year-old man had reportedly collected the money from Semion on the pretext of helping him to renew a contract involving supply of gas to the Nigeria Police Force.

However after the contractor got to know that he has been defrauded after the protocol officer started acting strangely on the phone after receiving the payment in January 2019, he reported the incident to the office of IGP Intelligence Response Team in Abuja and a team of detectives were mobilised to track down the suspect and his alleged accomplice, one Ugochukwu Ohia. He was asked to play along with Ugochukwu, who demanded more money.The contractor reportedly offered Ugochukwu N30,000, asking the suspect to meet him at the Abuja Central Business District to collect the money.

“Ugochukwu called his accomplice, Ohia, a cab driver, and they went to the agreed location. When they arrived at the location, Ohia called Semion informing him that he was the personal assistant to the IGP’s protocol officer.“They later sensed danger and attempted to escape in their vehicle but IRT operatives, who had lain in ambush, gave them a chase and apprehended them,” the source added.

Confessing to the crime, the Facebook user who defrauded policemen seeking promotion and peacekeeping programme, said he was introduced to cybercrime by his wife’s friend, one Chima. According to him, he paraded himself as DIG Peace Igbokwe (who is now retired) to swindle money out of policemen, who wanted to participate in peacekeeping missions outside the country.