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 said 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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