Female Member Of Robbery Syndicate Has Been Arrested For Impersonation

The operatives of Federal Anti Robbery Squad , FSARS, has arrested a woman Bolatito Owooniran who is alleged to be a member of a robbery syndicate that specialises in hacking into bank customers accounts to withdraw money in the Mushin area of Lagos.

The 39- year-old suspect,and mother of three, was apprehended inside the banking hall of a second generation bank, while at the verge of applying for an Automated Teller Machine, ATM card belonging to another account owner. With a protruding stomach, she approached one of the bank’s staff and identified herself as Ichekwai Elizabeth Ijeoma, owner of the account, unknown to her that the latter was the account officer of the original account holder.


The bank staff alerted the security officer who subsequently contacted FSARS operatives. However, at the station, it was discovered that the suspect was not pregnant after all. On closer observation, she was discovered to have stuff clothes on her stomach which made her look pregnant. She disclosed during interrogation that she was only an errand person, adding that she was promised N200,000 on completion of her assignment. Owooniran , who claimed to be a widow, said her boyfriend, whose name she gave simply as Tunji, introduced her to the men that sent her to the bank to pose as the real account owner. According to her : 

"My boyfriend , Tunji, introduced me to Okafor and Uchenna. They said their sister had died but that they did not want her bank to be aware. They said since I looked like their late sister, Ijeoma, that I should go to the bank to request for an ATM card, pretending to be her. It took me two weeks to practice Ijeoma, the original account holder’s signature. 

“They picked me in their vehicle at an eatery in Palm avenue and dropped me at Chicken George , from where I took a bike to the bank. I had succeeded in filling the ATM card form, only for the staff to say I did not look like the person on the system. I told them I was the person but that I looked different because of pregnancy. ” The most painful aspect now is that I can not reach any of them. They used me and dumped me. I believe they fled when they got wind of my arrest. I was tempted by the promise of N200,000. I am a widow with three children. At the moment , I have nothing doing ad I need to feed my children”.


Police sources said effort was on to arrest other fleeing members, while he mother of three will be charged to court soon.

from Vanguard