A
35-year-old man has been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command for using
naked photos of some ladies to blackmail them into paying him money.
Michael Atanda, who
bears Segun Bayo on Facebook, had allegedly collected N120,000 from four ladies
after threatening to expose their nude pictures on social media.
“Atanda, a computer
science National Diploma holder of a popular computer school based in Ikeja,
was arrested on Thursday by the surveillance Team of the Squad after about five
days of baiting and monitoring,” the police said in a statement on Sunday.
The police said the
suspect, who is in court for a similar offence, had requested for more money
from the ladies.
A graduate of Obafemi
Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Mr. Atanda went about adding several ladies on
facebook, and after two weeks, he would start chatting with them, the police
added.
“The profile picture on
my facebook account is that of a guy based in London, and so as part of my
introductions to ladies, I tell them that, I am a Construction Engineer as well
as that my parents and I are living in Europe” the police quoted the suspect as
saying.
“After sometime, I
would lure them into sexual conversations during which I persuaded them to send
their nude pictures to me. They would send and I would send mine to them too.”
“Before that I would
pretend that I was seeking a serious relationship with them, and that very
soon, I would be coming to Abuja on a business trip, during which I would see
them.”
Mr.
Atanda said, according to the police, he would feign seriousness in the
relationship by calling the ladies with the aid of computer software that
transforms his Nigerian line into an international line.
“Meanwhile, I would
warn them that I was calling through a public phone booth,” he said.
“As soon as they have
sent their nude pictures, I would come up with all manners of stories. And
begin to extort and blackmail them. Through this means, I have collected over
N121,000 from my latest victims.
“I was jailed last year
in a similar circumstance after (I) fraudulently collected N700, 000 from a
lady I met through a dating site. I was eventually bailed but the case is still
pending in the court.”
The suspect said he had
collected N10,000 from one Funmilola, N6,000 from one Motunrayo, N5,000 from
Joy, and N100,000 from Lizzy.
The police said apart
from Lizzy, who reported the incident but declined to press charges, three
other suspects, who were discovered during investigations, acknowledged on
phone calls they had been paying the suspect so that he doesn’t leak their nude
photographs online.
The police said
investigators had reached out to more victims after checking the suspect’s
Facebook conversations with a number of ladies, but all of them refused to come
forward, after confirming they were paying the suspect through his bank
statement.
Confirming the
development, the Police Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmos, said that the
police were carrying out a thorough investigation on the case to aid
prosecution.
The police said the
suspect has been transferred to SCID for further investigations.
-Premium Times
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