Afeez Hanafi
A businessman, Olugbemiga Ayeni, has
accused a naval officer attached to the Western Naval Command in Apapa,
Lagos State, of collecting ‘a mobilisation fee’ of N100,000 to
investigate a case of alleged threat to his life by one Aderemi.
Ayeni alleged that he gave the money to
the officer, identified simply as Captain Olubiyi, through a friend,
Dayo, upon the captain’s demand.
He claimed that Olubiyi had collected
the sum to investigate the alleged threat by Aderemi, who is also a
naval officer, and a breach of contract by Aderemi’s wife.
The businessman said the wife, Mrs.
Titilayo Adesida, had convinced him to buy three cars from a company by
paying in installment. He said he agreed to the deal without enquiring
about the company because of the trust he had in her.
However, the 46-year-old man realised
that he had been defrauded when the cars were not delivered on the
agreed date after he had allegedly paid N2.7m.
He said, “Sometime in November 2015,
Adesida approached me that the company she works for had some vehicles
to sell and that the payment could be made in installment. I gave her
N100,000 in cash as an indication of interest. I did not collect a
receipt because she is my cousin.
“On December 11, 2015, I paid N700,000
from my Sterling Bank account to her Ecobank account. I requested two
Toyota Hiace buses and a Toyota Siena. After making N800,000 deposit,
she asked me to speed up the payment so that the three cars would be
released on time. On December 17, 2015, I paid N1.9m from my bank
account to a First Bank account she sent to me. Except the first
N100,000, I have evidence of the payments. Upon her failure to deliver
the vehicles at the agreed time, I realised that I had been defrauded. I
further discovered that there was never any sale of vehicles by any
company.”
Ayeni told PUNCH Metro that his
cousin’s husband, Aderemi, started threatening him when he insisted
that the money he paid for the cars should be refunded. He said he
reported the case to Captain Olubiyi, being Aderemi’s senior, adding
that the captain collected N100,000 from him and promised to investigate
the allegations.
“When I became fed up with the
assurances and told Aderemi of my resolve to inform the naval
authorities, he started threatening me and vowed that I would disappear
should he be queried. I contacted one Captain Olubiyi, who promised to
handle the matter after I paid N100,000 as mobilisation fee. I paid the
money through a neighbour, Dayo. I also reported my cousin at the Sagamu
Road Police Division.”
After much pestering, it was learnt that
Adesida brought a Toyota Previa and Mitsubishi Space Wagon for Ayeni,
who said the cars were not in good condition. He added that he had to
replace the engine of one of the cars.
“She said the vehicles cost N2.050m but
she could not produce the receipts. She increased the price of the cars
so that it could cover much of the amount she collected from me.
Aderemi was fully aware of the deal and he constantly gave me assurance
that the company his wife works for had sold vehicles to naval officers
in the past,” he said.
However, Adesida said she had told Ayeni
to return the two cars when he complained, but he refused. She said the
matter was already with the police and that she only owed Ayeni a sum
of N250,000.
She said, “I don’t want anybody to call
me again on this issue. He should go ahead and do whatever he wants. He
had taken me to the police station and he sent threat messages to me. It
is true he sent money to my account to help him buy cars. I gave him
two cars. I told him to pay the remaining money to get the third car,
but he said he was no longer interested. He said the cars were bad, and I
told him to return them but he could not. My husband does not have
anything to do with this issue. I owe him only N250,000 now.”
The Lagos State Police spokesperson, SP
Dolapo Badmos, said the police had been trying to mediate between the
creditor and his cousin.
She said, “The conflict resolution
department of the police division is handling the matter and progress
has been made. The woman had already refunded N100,000. The army officer
is not involved in our investigation.”
Efforts to get the captain’s reaction on
the allegation were futile as calls made to his line rang out. He had
also yet to reply to a text message sent to his phone.
The spokesperson for the Western Naval
Command, Mr. Chris Ezekobe, said his efforts to trace the captain had
not yielded results.
“I have been trying to check his name
(Olubiyi), but I cannot find it. Give the man (Ayeni) my phone number;
let him call me,” he said.
Speaking with our correspondent on Sunday, Ayeni said he told the spokesperson that the captain was on Facebook, but he was advised to petition the Nigerian Navy headquarters in Abuja.
“The captain called me again, lamenting
that I reported him to the director of information (Ezekobe) and
threatened to kill me if he loses his job,” he added.
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