By Abimbola Ogunnaike
Five suspects are currently cooling-off in Edo State police cell for allegedly defrauding a student of Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma.
The State police spokesman, Chidi Nwabuzor, who made this disclosure on Friday, 14 July, 2023, said the suspects were arrested after hypnotising the 21-year-old victim.
It was gathered that the five suspects were part of 51 suspected cultists said to be terrorising residents of Benin City.
He stated that the fraudsters, after hypnotising the victim, ordered her to transfer the said sum from her account.
“We made a notable achievement of arresting a total of 51 suspects, cultists. Amongst this number were five armed robbers and at the same time fraudsters,” Nwabuzor said.
“These five suspects defrauded a female student of the Ambrose Alli University Ekpoma, aged 21 years old, of a total amount of N9.8 million.
“On that said day, the suspects met her on the way and tried to get information from her. While she was trying to do that (give them information), one of them touched her and she was no longer herself.
“She was hypnotised and they took her phone, took all the information relating to her account details and went away with the phone. A total sum of N9.8 million was withdrawn from that account.”
The police spokesman explained that the amount taken from the victim belonged to her recently deceased father of whom she was a beneficiary as the eldest child.
After getting wind of the crime, Nwabuzor said the state Commissioner of Police, Adamu Dankwara, ordered the tactical team of the Anti-Kidnapping and Cybercrime Unit of the Edo State Police Command to follow up on the case.
“While the investigation was going on, they were able to track the suspects down. They were arrested between the 9th and 10th of July, 2023.
“As we speak, they have made statements, confessed to the crime, and sooner or later, they will be arraigned in court,” the police spokesman added.
