Police arrest 2 for defrauding Korean N91m

The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has arrested two suspects over internet fraud, identity theft, cryptocurrency fraud, and obtaining money by false pretence.

The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, disclosed this via a statement issued on Tuesday.

Adejobi said the suspects specialise in defrauding unsuspecting victims of foreign countries by assuming identities of other persons and promising romantic relationships.

Adejobi said the duo, under the pretext, defrauded several victims, including a Korean national, Baek Seong-hee, before they were arrested by police operatives in Benin, the Edo State capital.

“In the extant case, a report on their activities was received from Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency in Korea through the Interpol National Central Bureau.

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“The report indicated that in May, 2021, the suspects approached the victim, one Baek Seong-hee, a Korean national, via Kakaotalk, a mobile messaging application used, especially in South Korea.

“The duo approached the victim, in the guise of being a member of the US Armed Forces stationed in Yemen.

“They used the pretext of a romantic relationship and defrauded the victim of 259,637,941 Korean Won (KRW) worth of cryptocurrency equivalent to about N91 million,” the police spokesperson said.

Adejobi stated that the arrest of the suspects in their hideout in Benin was made after investigations by the NPF-NCCC, adding that they had confessed to being part of a syndicate responsible for the crime.

“The have also stated their roles as accomplices who provided bank accounts for fraudsters in furtherance of their nefarious activities,” he noted.

The Star