EFCC arrests school owner for alleged visa, scholarship fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said on Friday that it had arrested a school owner in Uyo, Akwa Ibom, South-south Nigeria, for alleged visa and scholarship fraud.

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In a statement shared via its X handle, the commission said the suspect, Imaobong Okpong, offered fake scholarships “for non-existent studies abroad.”

The anti-graft agency arrested Ms Okpong, the owner of Michael Udonquak Schools in Akwa Ibom State, on Wednesday, following claims by a petitioner, Blessing Bassey.

Ms Bassey alleged that the accused defrauded her of N3 million under the guise of securing a university admission for her and also processing Canadian visas for her and her husband.

She also claimed that Ms Okpong is a serial fraudster.

To support her claims, Ms Bassey narrated how the suspect had allegedly defrauded a friend “who got stranded in China”.

She claimed that the suspect made her friend go to China only to realise that there was no scholarship. “Some of her victims had travelled abroad with fake documents that left many of them stranded overseas, while others faced deportation with huge financial losses,” the petitioner said.

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The EFCC noted that Ms Okpong will be charged in court after the conclusion of the investigation.

What petitioner told EFCC

Ms Bassey told the anti-graft agency that Ms Okpong contacted her in February 2024 and offered her an opportunity to secure a scholarship and visa to study abroad.

Conscious that things could go amiss, the petitioner said she put measures in place to prevent fraud by making Ms Bassey to sign an indemnity agreement and have it notarised before transferring N3 million to her First Bank account.

She said, once the payment was received, Ms Bassey went silent, rejected her calls, and failed to honour their agreement.

It was at this point that she reported the case to the EFCC.

In an effort to migrate in search of greener pastures, many Nigerians, particularly the youths, have fallen victim to fake scholarships and visa frauds. Such a desperate migration, colloquially referred to as “japa” in Nigeria, is usually motivated by general perception of limited job and economic opportunities in the country.

In 2014, the Nigerian Police Force arrested a syndicate involved in scholarship scams in Lagos.

In May, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) warned Nigerians to be wary of fraudsters offering non-existent foreign postgraduate scholarships purportedly originating from the commission.