Social media personality, Blessing Okoro, popularly known as Blessing CEO, has admitted falsely claiming to have breast cancer to solicit financial donations from members of the public.
The relationship therapist confessed during an interview with social media activist, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, in a video shared on Thursday.
Blessing CEO said she deliberately used the discovery of a non-cancerous breast lump to create a false cancer diagnosis and attract financial assistance amid pressure from an ongoing Economic and Financial Crimes Commission-related dispute.
“The pressure was too much. So what did I do? That was where the cancer drama came in. And because of the pressure, I saw this embarrassment coming. I said to myself, what stunt can I pull? What stunts can I pull? Then I pulled out the cancer,” she said.
She explained that a medical check-up conducted months earlier had revealed a lump in her breast, but the result did not indicate cancer.
“Honestly, I do not have cancer. The truth is, I had gone for a check-up a few months ago and they found a lump on my breast, but it was not cancerous.
“So I took advantage of that, came to the media, cried for help and said that the lump was cancerous. I played an emotional game. I wanted funds, but I didn’t come out directly to ask for funds,” she said.
Blessing CEO said the fundraising began after she created the impression that she was considering selling her personal belongings, including her car and house, prompting members of the public to encourage her to share her bank details for donations.
She said people subsequently began sending money in different amounts.
According to her, the donations stopped after VeryDarkMan challenged her cancer claims and demanded evidence to substantiate the fundraising appeal.
“When I saw the video, immediately he (VeryDarkMan) made that video, the donation stopped. The donation paused. So I’m like, what do I do? What do I do? That was where the whole orchestration and resolving and all that stuff came,” she said.
She added that she was not proud of her actions.
The admission marks a reversal of her earlier position during the controversy, which erupted in March after she announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and solicited financial support for treatment.
In April, Blessing CEO admitted receiving N13m in donations during an interview with content creator Egungun of Lagos but insisted that she owed nobody an apology.
She had attributed the confusion surrounding her diagnosis to possible miscommunication and said she was still seeking clarification from her doctors.
However, the Delta State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association subsequently disowned a histology report circulated in connection with her claims, saying it was originally issued to another patient, Deborah Mbara, and not Blessing CEO.
The EFCC later arraigned her on a six-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence, forgery and other alleged offences involving N13m raised from members of the public.
She pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The commission alleged that she used a falsified medical report to solicit donations. The allegations remain subject to determination by the court.
The cancer-related case is one of three fraud cases instituted against Blessing CEO by the EFCC.
In a separate case, she was arraigned over an alleged N36m fraud involving a property transaction and secured N10m bail in June.
She is also standing trial over an alleged N69.15m fraud involving a five-year lease of a property in Lekki, Lagos, which the EFCC alleged she presented as belonging to her.
The Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja granted her N20m bail in the case in July.
During the continuation of the trial on October 26, a prosecution witness, Dr Onuoha Okeigwe, told the court that Blessing CEO allegedly misrepresented herself as the owner of the property before collecting the money.
Police, EFCC open investigations as Blessing CEO’s cancer claims unravel
Okeigwe maintained during cross-examination that he relied on her representations, including WhatsApp conversations and other documents, before making the payment.
He also told the court that he had instituted a separate civil suit to recover more than N100m allegedly spent renovating the property.
The criminal case was adjourned until January 12, 2027, for the prosecution to call additional witnesses.
Blessing CEO pleaded not guilty to the charges in the separate fraud cases.
She was released from custody in late October after spending months at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre. Her detention also coincided with the death of her nine-year-old son, Bryan, in June.
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