The Police Special Fraud Unit has arrested a 39 year-old-man it accuses of specializing in opening multiple bank accounts under different names to defraud financial institutions and the public.
The suspect, Okonkwo Nwachukwu, was arrested after he allegedly attempted to open another savings account at a Zenith bank branch at Amuwo Odofin, Lagos.
Mr. Nwachukwu claimed the multiple accounts were to enable him beat the government’s cashless policy, to allow his business run efficiently.
But a police statement on Sunday said that Mr. Nwachukwu presented an already completed savings account opening package bearing the name of Obiozor Ifeanyi and identified himself as such with a National Identity Card.
“While the Customer Service office was checking the documents, the suspect went to the Marketing Unit and collected another savings account opening package and completed same with another name Ogueji Nnamdi and returned to the Customer Service Desk and presented same for account opening with another National Identity Card bearing Ogueji Nnamdi,” the statement said.
“This attempt to open another savings account within minutes with another identity, made the Customer Service Officer to be suspicious and consequently, she decided to search the system with phone number 08162502677 supplied by the customer and discovered that the same person had already opened about twenty-five (25) savings account at various branches bearing different names.
“It was also further alleged that he opened and operates a corporate account number 1012000129 belonging to Chukon Integrated Limited and he also identified himself as Okonkwo Nwachukwu when he opened the said account.”
The police said the suspect, who is from Okija in Ihiala local government of Anambra State, is into cargo business and accompanies goods from China to Lagos.
“The suspect confessed to the alleged crime but stated that the multiple accounts he opened was to enable him run his business successfully. That the cashless policy does not allow him to withdraw huge sum of money in one account and as such, he was advised to open multiple accounts so as to spread his money,” the statement, signed by Ngozi Isintume-Agu, Public Relations Officer, SFU, said.
“He added further that he has N50, 000.00 each in 15 different accounts while the remaining accounts have N20, 000.00, N10, 000.00 and N5, 000.00 respectively.
“He equally confessed that the National Identity Card and PHCN bills were all forged by one Pepper who is still at large. The suspect came back from China on 27th January 2014 and started the multiple account opening from 5th February, 2014 to 7th February when he was apprehended,” the police added.
Mrs. Isintume-Agu said that police are continuing their investigation to unravel the suspect’s motive behind the multiple account opening.
Posted by , Published at 11:41 PM and have
