By DEBORAH AKPEDE

The Police Command in Lagos State has apprehended a suspected kingpin of a vehicle fraud syndicate linked to the alleged fraudulent acquisition of 29 vehicles valued at over N1 billion.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) gathered that the suspect, who has been on the run, was eventually apprehended after investigations and confessional statements from arrested members of the syndicate, identified him as the alleged mastermind of the fraud.

Following the development, the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Mr Fatai Tijani, directed the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Yaba, to intensify investigations and arrest other members of the syndicate.

A police source told NAN on Saturday that the syndicate specialised in fraudulently obtaining exotic vehicles from unsuspecting dealers through false representations and the subsequent conversion of the vehicles for personal gain.

“The suspects targeted reputable vehicle dealers by claiming the vehicles were required for legitimate business transactions or political purposes.

“They obtained the vehicles using dud or post-dated cheques before transferring them to third parties and concealed the identities of the principal beneficiaries through intermediaries.

“The breakthrough followed the harmonisation of three separate investigations involving conspiracy, obtaining goods by false pretence, fraudulent conversion, stealing and the issuance of dud cheques.

“Although the cases were reported separately by different complainants, detectives established that they were perpetrated by the same organised criminal network, ” he said.

The source said that Inelligence-led policing and the AUTOREG vehicle tracking platform had so far led to the recovery of 16 vehicles, 12 of which had been returned to their rightful owners.

According to him, vehicles valued at about N534 million are still outstanding, while efforts are ongoing to recover them and arrest other fleeing members of the syndicate.

“We remain committed to apprehending all those involved, recovering the outstanding vehicles and ensuring they are prosecuted,” he said.

He said that the investigation was being handled by the Financial Crimes Section of the SCID, Yaba, under the supervision of the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the department, Mr Dayo Akinbisehin

“The investigation exposed a coordinated criminal syndicate rather than isolated incidents, ” he said.

The source advised vehicle dealers to verify the identities and credentials of prospective buyers and to exercise caution when transactions involve post-dated cheques or unfamiliar intermediaries. (NAN)