Matthew Aiyeola, an Abuja businessman, has narrated how he was recently detained for the crimes of another by some officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the anti-graft agency’s Abuja office.
In an interview with FIJ on Tuesday, Aiyeola said he was arrested as a result of a N30.86 million fraud perpetrated by Gbenga Segun Adejuwon, a UK-based Nigerian, in November 2024.
“On Friday, November 28, some officials of the EFCC came to my office in Abuja to have me arrested on the matter involving the N38.86 million fraud perpetrated by Gbenga Segun Adejuwon,” said Aiyeola.
“Ironically, this happened after I had written and submitted a petition to the same commission on the same development in December 2024.
“After my arrest, I was taken to the EFCC headquarters in Zone 6, and subsequently detained.
“It later emerged that Mr Segun, the actual owner of the sum, had recently reported the matter to the EFCC, and that was what led to my arrest.
“Interestingly, the anti-graft agency never arrested Omolola Ijibadejo, the lady who introduced Gbenga Segun Adejuwon to me. This meant the petition I wrote to the commission in December 2024 was never acted upon.”
Aiyeola told FIJ that he spent the entire day in detention at the commission’s office.
“The following day, I was taken to the commission’s Tax Fraud Department where a guarantor was eventually permitted to stand surety for me on the matter,” said Aiyeola.
“After this, I was released and instructed to make an appearance at the commission’s office every Friday till the matter gets resolved.
“This is the humiliation I am currently being made to suffer after Gbenga Segun Adejuwon, with the help of Omolola Ijibadejo, defrauded me of N30.86 million.”
BACKGROUND
On October 1, FIJ published a story on how Adejuwon took the N30.86 million during a foreign exchange (Forex) transaction but failed to fulfil his end of the bargain.
Aiyeola transferred the sum to Adejuwon in November 2024, after Omolola Mary Ijibadejo, an acquaintance, had introduced the UK-based Nigerian to the Abuja businessman as a person who had dollars in abundance and wanted to sell them.
Aiyeola, who was in desperate need of dollar notes at the time, immediately got Ijibadejo to set up a conference phone call with Adejuwon so he could discuss exchange rate terms with him.
Both parties agreed on a rate and Aiyeola transferred N35.86 million to RPDD Ltd., a business enterprise owned by Adejuwon.
In return, the Abuja businessman expected an equivalent payment of $25,000 from Adejuwon.
However, the $25,000 never saw the light of day.
At first, Adejuwon made Aiyeola believe he had already completed the transaction, and that all that was left was for the sum to be received by him.
When Aiyeola subsequently requested a telex copy of the $25,000 transaction from Adejuwon, the UK-based Nigerian gave him excuses that included network issues from Providus Bank, his bank.
The UK resident later sent a fake telex copy of the transaction to the Abuja businessman.
In the end, Adejuwon failed to send the agreed $25,000 to Aiyeola’s account.
After much pressure was put on Adejuwon, he eventually returned N5 million out of the N35.86 million he took from Aiyeola on January 3.
Since then, he has been mute and has not returned the remaining N30.86 million to the Abuja businessman.
Ijibadejo, the business associate who introduced Adejuwon to Aiyeola, went into hiding and was never seen again.
As a consequence of Adejuwon and Ijibadejo’s actions, the importation business of one Mr Segun, the actual owner of the sum, crumbled.
Apart from his financial woes, Aiyeola has been dealing with a prostate cancer diagnosis.
Neither Adejuwon nor Ijibadejo responded to phone calls and WhatsApp messages from FIJ for a reaction to the accusations of fraud made by Aiyeola at the time.
LAWSUIT THREAT
On October 8, a second story was published on how Adejuwon threatened to file a lawsuit against FIJ for exposing his fraudulent acts.
Adejuwon sent his threats via a series of WhatsApp messages to FIJ between October 2 and October 7.
“This is very very incorrect allegations (sic),” wrote Adejuwon in one of the WhatsApp messages he sent to FIJ on October 2.
“And I have just been advised by my legal team about such allegations being posted online to damage my reputation.
“I am shocked that your organisation makes decision on false accusations and publish such false allegations.
“Acting and damaging my reputation by publishing (sic) on such is very very disappointing and I will be taking legal actions against your establishment.”
On October 7, Adejuwon sent the following WhatsApp message to the same FIJ phone line:
“IOC LAW. No 8, Agboyi Road, Ogudu, Lagos. My legal team will be in touch.”
Apart from the threats he issued, Adejuwon didn’t indicate any willingness to refund the N30.86 million he took from Aiyeola.
After sending the first threat message to FIJ, Adejuwon also reached out to Aiyeola via an intermediary in the same period, instructing him to get FIJ to pull down the October 1 story or risk never getting his N30.86 million refund.
