A graduate of
Political Science, Jehu Kwasu, has narrated how he impersonated the Catholic
Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Matthew Kukah and defrauded prominent
Nigerians of millions of naira.
Kwasu said his
victims included Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith Church Worldwide, who he
claimed gave him N500,000; the Chairman, Honeywell Group, Oba Otudeko, N1m;
Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu, N500,000; businessman, Alhaji Aminu Dantata, N2m.
He allegedly
collected the sums for Internally Displaced Persons.
He said, “I
collected N500,000 from Otudeko, CEO, Honeywell: From Admiral Kanu, I got
N500,000. I also got N500,000 from Bishop Oyedepo and N2m from Dantata. I also
got money from Gen. Wushishi and others.
“I opened a
Guaranty Trust Bank account in Bishop Kukah’s name. I registered a SIM card in
my name, but used Bishop Kukah’s picture on my True Caller account, so that
when I call, his picture would appear (on the recipient’s phone.)”
Kwasu, who is
serving a two-month sentence in the Keffi Prison, admitted on Friday in Abuja
that he realised over N5.7m.
Police sources
said only N1.7m was found in his bank account, adding that the suspect spent
most of the money he made on girls and hard drugs.
It was gathered
that Kwasu, the son of late Anglican Bishop, James Kwasu, also exploited his
father’s name, to extort money from the Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari,
when the latter was the Speaker, House of Representatives. The 25-year old
explained that he defrauded his victims by soliciting money on phone to cater
to IDPs in the country.
The cleric’s son
stated that he obtained a passport with the name, Mathew Hassah Kukah Jehu, and
also opened an account with the GTB in the same name.
He said, “I called
people on the telephone and told them I was Bishop Kukah. I used his picture on
my True Caller account, so that when I called people, they would think he was
the one talking with them.
“I also obtained a
passport in Bishop Kukah’s name which I used to open an account with GTB. The
money I realised was paid into the account and I used an Automated Teller
Machine card to withdraw it.”
Punch Metro
gathered that Kukah was alerted to the scam by some people close to him. The
cleric was said to have petitioned the police, which asked the bank to place a
“no debit order” on the account.
Following his
inability to withdraw from the account, Kwasu was said to have visited the bank
to complain, where he was arrested.
Findings indicate
that Kwasu had earlier been arrested and remanded in prison for impersonating
Bishop Steven Akobe of the Anglican Diocese of Kabba, Kogi State, but was
granted bail.
The police said
Kwasu had also attempted to extort money from Senator David Mark, claiming to
be Akobe.
“Mark said I
should come for some money, so I sent my girlfriend. But she was arrested and I
was taken to court and sentenced to two months imprisonment or N9,000 fine,”
Kwasu stated.
It was gathered
that the suspect, who had two female siblings, sold his deceased parents’ house
in Kaduna for N10m and lavished the money on girls and a profligate lifestyle.
The Federal
Capital Territory Commissioner of Police, Muhammad Mustafa, stated that Kwasu
was arrested by the men of his command, after Kukah complained about his
activities.
The CP said, “We
received a petition from Bishop Kukah alleging that the boy had been
impersonating him and extorting money from prominent people. So, my men went to
work and were able to track the suspect and arrest him. He is a habitual
criminal and I would like to advise the public against responding to emails or
phone calls from unknown persons requesting financial support for one cause or
the other.”
Mustafa also
called on the public to report every suspicious phone call and email to the
police for investigation.
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