Police arrest three international bank cheque ‘forgers’, celebrity impersonators

* Suspects: we’ve defrauded victims of over N400m in four years

Operatives attached to the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, have arrested three suspects who allegedly specialise in forging cheques of international banks.

The suspects, the police said, were also notorious for impersonating foreign celebrities.

Innocent Odumosor (27), Ajie Samuel Chukwudi (31) and Godwin Divine (19) were arrested at their Lagos residences by detectives of the zonal Anti-Corruption Unit, following intelligence report on their activities.

Alleged ring leader, Odumosor, it was gathered, lived in a four-bedroom apartment inside Ocean Freeze Estate, Ologoro, Ikate, while his deputy, Ajie, resided at Star Times Estate, Ago Palaace Way, Okota.

According to the police, the suspects operated with syndicate members based abroad.

Odumosor and Ajie, sources said, confessed to having defrauded their victims to the tune of N400 million in the last four years.

During police interrogation, the suspects were said to have given vivid details of their exploits, including how they purchased tools from Xeet.com, which they used to commit the crimes.

They narrated how they impersonated famous foreign celebrities and defrauded the Bank of America of millions of dollars.

In his confessional statement, Odumosor, a university graduate, said the tools they purchased from the above named website were used to tamper with the software of foreign banks in order for them to get the information they needed to clone sensitive details.

He said he started internet fraud in 2021, two years after graduating from the university, adding that he learned the ropes through the internet from sites like “Xeet.PW and Monove.com”.

Giving details about the software, he said: “It works with the software of different foreign banks. We clone cashier cheques and contact other members of the syndicate overseas to source for foreign accounts where they can log in the cheques.

“The victim unknowingly cashes the cheque and sends it to the account our syndicate will provide.

"The victims are randomly chosen and engaged in long chats before we strike.

"We normally load the account, and the victim will be chatting with any member of the syndicate resident abroad.

"I specialise in loading foreign bank accounts by buying loading tools from different websites such as Olux.TO, Monove.com and Cheap.com at different prizes ranging from $10 to $100.

“I get different foreign bank accounts from other members of the syndicate and I load money into the account. The foreign banks are mostly in the USA.

“We share proceeds of our loot 50/50.”

Asked about the syndicate’s latest transaction, he said: “The latest transaction I had with Ajie was that of $350,000 cheques from Bank of America and the beneficiary is Babara Franks.

"I got $150,000 as part of my share using my Access bank and it came to be N230 million.

“I used part of it to buy Mercedes GLE worth N120 million and used the remaining to take care of myself, my family, and my music career.

“I use my I-Phone 16 Promax and laptop to do the deals.

"I pay N10 million for my four-bedroom flat at Ocean Based Estate at Ikate,” he said.

Police investigation revealed that after they received proceeds of their last exploits on March 28, 2024, Odumosor acquired a Mercedes 223 GLE valued at N250 million while Ajie bought a Mercedez GLE 221 worth N150 million.

The share of the third suspect is said to still be cooling off in his bank in Nigeria.

Ajie alias Pappy, a Mechanical Engineering graduate, said he got $50,000 from their deal, stating that he was a middle man during negotiations.

It was gathered that detectives are collaborating with the International Police with a view to rounding up other members of the syndicate based abroad and that they have already confiscated international passports of the suspects.

They are also said to be beaming their searchlight on all the banks connected with the activities of the suspects with a view to ascertaining if there was internal connivance.

When contacted, the AIG Zone 2, Adegoke Fayoade, confirmed the arrest of the suspects, saying that investigations were still on.