‘I ‘ll never forget day I found my son beheaded’
Mr John Onah, 39-year-old father of a five-year-old boy beheaded last Monday with his headless body dumped in an uncompleted building in Shabu, Lafia LGA in Nasarawa State, has called on security operatives to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to jus
Internet fraudsters are making quick money using the Facebook, Twitter and other social media accounts of senators to swindle constituents and other unsuspecting persons, Daily Trust can report.
With photographs and verifiable details of lawmakers, the fraudsters pose as the lawmakers, send friend requests, engage unsuspecting constituents in chats and afterwards defraud them. Many, especially unsuspecting unemployed persons, have been swindled through this channel.
Recently, a suspected fraudster using the name and photograph of the chairman of the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund, Senator Jibrin Barau (APC, Kano) attempted to swindle our correspondent.
Through Facebook messenger, he pledged to secure employment for our correspondent in the Nigeria Customs Service.
He sent this to our correspondent, “Okay, this is to notify you that there is an ongoing replacement in Nigerian Customs Service and the available position is Assistant superintendent of customs ii (ASCii). In case you are interested or have anybody that is interested you let me know. I will assist.”
When our correspondent indicated beheaded.
For now, I don’t suspect anybody and even if I suspect someone, I did not catch him red handed killing my son. I’ve left everything to God.
DT: What do you wish to tell the government concerning this matter?
My appeal is for government and security operatives to arrest the perpetrators interest, by sending, “I’m”, he sent this, “Okay, kindly contact the recruitment officer on 08144529346, tell him that you are from me, he will assist you to get the application form and also lead you through. If there is any problem, don’t hesitate to let me know.”
When contacted, Barau dissociated himself from the Facebook account, describing the user as a fraudster. “I don’t know anything about it. I have on many occasions placed advert on it. That’s not my Facebook account and I know how to reach my constituents,” he said.
A former governor (name withheld), who is a serving senator, said the fraudsters have defied many strategies and forced many of his colleagues out of the social media.
“My Facebook account is very active but I don’t accept friend request, no matter who you are. Aside from this, I have devised a latest strategy that the handlers of my account review regularly. Of all the Facebook accounts you see in my name, only one is genuine.
“The strategy is working because to attract people, the fraudsters use my photographs on the fake accounts but on my genuine account I don’t have my photograph. They have driven many of my colleagues away from the social media,” he said.
Crying out last Tuesday, senators, of this devilish act and bring them to justice.
On her part, mother of the beheaded child, Grace Onah, amid tears said, “The only thing I can say is that only God can fight for the soul of my child.”
The Nasarawa State Police Command confirmed the beheading of the five-year-old boy by unknown assailants.
Spokesperson of the police command,
We don’t have a toilet in the house. We usually defecate either at the riverside, a close-by refuse dump or the bush close to the area. Meshach and his brother always visit the refuse side to defecate and that faithful day they went together but his brother came back alone and when we asked of Meshach, he pointed towards the refuse dump
including the Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, during a debate on cybercrime sponsored by Senator Buhari DSP Kennedy Idirisu, said the police had begun investigation into the case and appealed to members of the public with relevant information that can lead to the arrest of the culprits to contact the police. He also called on parents and guardians to properly watch over their children and wards to complement police effort in preventing such crimes in future. Abdulfatai (APC, Oyo) decried the situation.
Abdulfatai who chairs the Senate Commitee on ICT and cybercrime said about 3,500 cyber-attacks on the Nigeria ICT space have resulted in the loss of over $450m and that government servers are currently under serious threat.
Sharing his experience, a victim of the cybercrime and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Land Transport, Senator Gbenga Ashafa (APC, Lagos) said his Facebook account was recently hacked and many people were swindled.
“Two weeks ago, an account with my picture and name was opened. They demanded for money from people. A lot of people believed it and gave them money. Until I placed an advert to dissociate myself from it, they kept defrauding the people,” he said.
Senator Ekweremadu said they were all victims of the cybercrime. “We experience these attacks through mails, social media and in other forms; it’s an important bill that would help control this act.”
To stem the tide, the Senate urged the National Security Adviser, General Babagana Monguno (rtd) to alert all security agencies and financial institutions in the country about the current and threatening dimensions of cyber-attacks.
The Upper legislative chamber mandated its Committee on ICT and cybercrime to immediately convoke a national stakeholder’s conference on cyber security with a view to stimulating a collective reflection among relevant stakeholders.
A security operative, who pleaded anonymity, said the fraudsters are within the National Assembly. “This is not a new thing; they are within the National Assembly. Even me, I was contacted. It’s a syndicate and we are trailing them. We recently arrested some of them in Nasarawa and Abuja,” he said.
... We’re all victims - Ekweremadu