Operatives of the Uyo Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have arrested an alleged serial fraudster, Mrs. Imaobong Okpong, for her alleged involvement in a series of visa fraud schemes and fake offers of foreign scholarships for nonexistent studies abroad.

According to a statement posted by the EFCC on its official X handle on Friday, Okpong, an alleged owner of a school in Mbierebe in Akwa Ibom State, was arrested following claims of a petitioner, Dr. Blessing Bassey.

Bassey, a clinician, alleged that the suspect defrauded her of the sum of N3m under the guise of securing a university admission for her and also processing Canadian visas for her and her husband.

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

She explained that she did not make any payment until the suspect signed an indemnity agreement, which she notarized before making the N3,000,000 electronic transfer into the suspect’s 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 the terms of the signed agreement.

Bassey claimed that the suspect had defrauded other victims, especially one of her friends.

“I met someone in China. She was stranded when she got there and realized that there was no scholarship. Some of her (Okpong’s) victims had travelled abroad with fake documents that left many of them stranded overseas, while some others faced deportation with huge financial losses,” Bassey was quoted as saying.

The EFCC disclosed that the suspect will be charged in court as soon as investigations are concluded.

Meanwhile, the EFCC, in a statement on Friday, said a Kwara Court has jailed an entrepreneur, Muhammed Bukar, for possession of counterfeit currency and cybercrime.

Justice Abimbola Awogboro of the Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin, Kwara State, sentenced Bukar, who hails from Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State, to six months imprisonment.

According to the statement, Justice Awogboro handed down the sentence after finding the defendant guilty on a two-count charge preferred against him by the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the EFCC. (Saturday PUNCH)