The Bayero University Kano (BUK) says it is investigating a student accused of online impersonation and financial misconduct.
A United States-based university lecturer and public commentator, Farooq Kperogi, made the allegations against Ismail Sani, a 300-level Veterinary Medicine student at the university, on Monday.
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The university’s spokesperson, Lamara Garba, in a statement on Wednesday, said the institution had launched a formal investigation into the reports of scamming activities involving the student.
“The Management wishes to state that Bayero University Kano maintains strict standards of conduct, discipline, and character for all students throughout the duration of their studies. Any conduct capable of bringing the name and reputation of the University into disrepute is treated with the utmost seriousness.
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According to Mr Lamara, the inquiry aims to establish the suspect’s current academic status. He clarified that the university’s disciplinary jurisdiction is limited to registered students and does not extend to alums or private individuals.
“The University also wishes to emphasise that the personal actions of any individual student do not represent the values or character of Bayero University Kano as an institution.
“In view of the allegations, the University has commenced a preliminary inquiry to ascertain the facts surrounding the matter. The appropriate University authorities are reviewing the issue in line with the institution’s established rules and disciplinary procedures governing students’ conduct,” the statement added.
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The Management also commended the public-spirited efforts of Farooq Kperogi and many other well-meaning individuals who, often quietly and without public recognition, extend financial support to students in need by assisting with registration fees and other educational expenses.
“Such acts of generosity continue to play an important role in expanding access to education and supporting deserving students.
“The University wishes to assure members of the public that, should the allegations be substantiated, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken in accordance with its regulations and applicable laws.
“Members of the public are kindly urged to allow the investigative process to take its course while refraining from speculation or the circulation of unverified information”, the university stated.
Read below the allegation by Mr Kperogi
The “Halima Tahir Scammer” Is a Man I’ve Helped Many Times
By Farooq Kperogi
A few days ago, I shared the story of a scammer who claimed to be “Halima Tahir,” a 300-level microbiology undergraduate at Bayero University, Kano, who scammed me into helping “her” with tuition fees and other school expenses three different times.
Well, after some digital sleuthing, I discovered, to my utmost shock, that “Halima Tahir” is actually one Ismail Sani (https://www.facebook.com/ismail.sani.29309), whom I had helped with tuition fees and other school expenses from 2024 through 2025, even though I didn’t know him from a bar of soap.
Ismail Saleh Sani is a student of Veterinary Medicine at Bayero University, Kano, who has just completed his second year. He first reached out to me in September 2024.
He said he was a second-year Human Anatomy student at the Federal University in Dutse but had just been admitted to study Veterinary Medicine at BUK. He needed help paying his tuition fees to secure his place.
I helped him. I asked for no verification. He nonetheless sent me evidence of the payment, which I hadn’t demanded because I had no suspicions. He was grateful and gave me unsolicited updates on his school progress.
He later made two other financial requests, including one to help an old woman who supposedly couldn’t afford medicine for an ear infection, which I granted.
After that, he kept pestering me with an even bigger request: to buy laptops to set up a JAMB-coaching school. He said he had called the Online ExtraMural JAMB Lesson Project. I ignored him.
He then used the name “Halima Tahir” to get more money from me, apparently in cahoots with someone who actually bears the name Halima Tahir Dahiru.
The email address ([email protected]) he used to communicate with me as “Halima Tahir” (recall that the initial display name in the email was Ishmael Sani) appears on the receipt of his last school fees payment retrieved via Remita. Truecaller confirmed that the phone number on the receipt belongs to Ismail Sani. (He has now deactivated the email address!)
I confronted him with the evidence and was prepared to forgive him if he came clean and apologised. After all, he is a legitimate student. But he flatly denied it, even swearing by Allah. He claimed someone stole his email address to perpetrate the crime.
Fine. I dug deeper and found his 2023 JAMB registration slip. Sure enough, the email he used was [email protected]. I shared the slip with him and asked how he had used the same email address in 2023. I also asked why the initial display name for the email address was Ishmael Sani, which also appears in the alternative address ([email protected]) he uses on Truecaller and with which he had previously emailed me.
READ ALSO: BUK expels 60 students over examination malpractice
I thought that, in light of the overwhelming evidence I showed him, he would be penitent and seek forgiveness. I gave him multiple opportunities to show remorse and apologise. He refused. Instead, he kept protesting his innocence with the same words and in the same stylistic register he used when I first called him out for changing the display name from Ishmael Sani to Halima Tahir. He invoked Allah, Ramadan, and every sacred symbol in Islam to swear his innocence even though the evidence against him is incontrovertible. Can you believe that?
He is clearly a dangerous, well-practised scammer. Or perhaps he is mentally unwell. Whatever the case, he does not belong in polite society. He belongs in prison, or somewhere he cannot harm people.
My search showed that he scammed other friends. He scammed Dr Hussaini Abdu into paying tuition fees under the name “Halima Tahir.” He scammed Mohammed Dahiru (“MD”) Aminu as “Halima Tahir” and also attempted to scam him as Ismail Sani. He scammed Dr Abdulbasit Kassim (who appears in his Facebook profile photo) under both Ismail Sani and “Halima Tahir.” I am certain there are many more people he has scammed whom I do not know.
I am sharing his details in the hope that Bayero University, whose proud alumnus I am, will take action against this criminal who is dragging the school’s name through the mud.
I am also done helping strangers. The torrents of emails I have been receiving from total strangers since I published the previous scam story should stop. I am no Dangote. In fact, I doubt Dangote himself would still be rich if he granted the requests I have been receiving these past few days.
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