Operatives of Rapid Response Squad (RRS) of Lagos State Police Command on Friday
apprehended a young lady, her boyfriend and two others for stealing an
Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card which belonged to one Musa Alli and
withdrew over N300, 000.00 from the account.
The lady, Bamigboye Imoleayo, 24, was arrested by the operatives at a
club house (name withheld) in Surulere area of Lagos State over the
crime, before arresting three other accomplices, including her
boyfriend, Adeyinka Ayodele, the same day in Itori, Ogun State.
The
victim, who reported the case at the RRS's office in Alausa, said that
he met the suspect at a club in Surulere last week Friday. That the lady
had earlier stolen his ATM before memorizing his Personal
Identification Number (PIN) during online transfer of funds into his
friend's account.
"I thought I had misplaced the card not knowing that the lady had stolen
it and thereafter glimpsed at the PIN for withdrawal", he noted. He
said that he was shocked on Saturday afternoon when he received alerts amounting to N90, 000:00 withdrawals.
"while I was still contemplating on how to deal with the issue, I got
another debit alert for buying two Infinix phones totalling N84,000:00. I
was confused and shocked. I didn’t know what action to take on a Saturday evening…. On Sunday, there was another debit. I couldn’t pin the crime to the lady I met at the club. I lodged a complaint on Monday
morning at my bank and I was told that the withdrawals and shopping
were legitimately made by me. I reported the incident at the RRS's
office on Monday
after informing my bank. My emphasis to the police was the withdrawals
and shopping totalling N300,000:00. It was unbelievable for me when I
was face to face with the suspect, the lady I met at the club. And, she
explained everything," he stated.
After the arrest, the lady, Bamigboye Imoleayo, owned up during
interrogations that she pocketed the victims ATM card when the owner
slept off during their conversation at night at the club.
"I managed to steal the card when Musa (victim) dozed off during our
conversations. Initially, I had spied on and crammed his PIN when he was
sending money to his colleague via mobile app…. I committed this
offence because I was so desperate to re-stock my shop at Wasimi in Ogun
State, and also to take care of my only daughter. I never had a rethink
while committing the crime. Although, I regretted my action now," she
stated.
She further narrated how she in company of her lover withdrew and expended funds from the ATM.
"After I spied on his PIN during a particular banking transaction on his
phone, I intended to only withdraw N20,000.00 out of his bank account
and then destroy the card…. However, when I withdrew the money, and
checked the account balance, I was shocked to see his balance.
Afterwards, I withdrew another N70,000.00 again making N90,000.00 that
day. Then, the following day, I called my boyfriend, who instructed me
not to destroy the card, but i should come straight to Itori, Ogun
State, where he resides. On getting to him, he called two of his
friends, Abimbola Akintanna and Owolabi Bamidele, to use the ATM at any
nearest bank."
He added that they took the card to a shopping mall in Abeokuta where they bought phones and clothes.
"The following day, we went straight to Abeokuta to use the card. We
thought by going this far nobody could trace us. We bought two android
phones for N84,000 at a phone store.… We proceeded to a boutique where
four of us bought clothes worth N126,000. I recharged my phone with
another N2,500 worth of recharge card. The money spent from the account
was over N300, 000.00," she revealed.
Two Android phones, 8 pairs of trousers and shirts were recovered from
the suspects during a thorough search of their residents. Confirming the
arrest, the image maker of Lagos State Police Command, Superintendent
of Police, SP Dolapo Badmus, urged members of public to always protect
their PIN during banking transaction at any point in time. The suspect
and exhibits recovered have been transferred to State Criminal
Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, for prosecution.
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