On September, Adewale Ajayi, an Ekiti State-based car dealer, was happy when Adedayo Aderuku, a customer, approached his stand to purchase two vehicles.
After an agreement was reached on the cost of the two cars, a Toyota Camry commonly referred to as ‘BigDaddy’ and the one popularly called ‘Muscle’, Aderuku, a student at the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, transferred a total of N6.9 million to Ajayi’s Access Bank account.
However, trouble started when on September 9, Ajayi, after making use of part of the proceeds from the sale, could no longer access the remaining funds in his account.
Ajayi immediately contacted one of Access Bank’s branches in Ibadan, Oyo State, but was told that a ‘post no debit’ (PND) restriction had been placed on his account.
It turned out that Aderuku had hacked into a bank account belonging to Itex Integrated Services Ltd., a Lagos-based company that specialises in POS services, stole money from it, and used part of the funds to purchase the two cars from Ajayi.
THE MOMENT OF TRUTH
“I was on a journey to Ibadan when I discovered that I could no longer access the funds in the account. This was after I had transferred about N6 million from it,” Ajayi told FIJ.
“I immediately visited an Access Bank branch right there in Ibadan and demanded to know what was wrong with my account. It was at that period that the official that attended to me told me that a PND had been placed on my account.
“I instantly told him that there must be a mistake somewhere. I have never borrowed any money from anybody, so, why should a restriction be placed on my account?
“It was then that the official told me that I had been a recipient of funds that Aderuku had obtained through fraudulent means.
“They also told me that he had used the money he stole from Ifex Solution’s account to purchase the vehicles from me.”
ADERUKU PURCHASED CARS FOR HIS PASTOR AND GRANDMOTHER
Ajayi also said he later obtained a police report from the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department SCID in Ado-Ekiti and submitted it at the bank’s branch in the city but the restriction would still not be lifted.
“I later found out that Aderuku had bought the car for Michael Agbaeze, his pastor, and Helen Abejide, his grandmother,” Ajayi said.
“The pastor even came with him to my stand to pick up the car himself. He even took pictures after taking ownership of the car before leaving my premises.
“The muscle he bought for N4 million was for his pastor, while the big daddy he bought for N2.9 million was for his grandmother.
“The funniest part is that Itex Integrated Solutions has since taken possession of both cars in a bid to recover the stolen funds from Aderuku, but Access Bank still would not lift the restriction they placed on my account.
Ajayi also said Aderuku was first arrested by officers from the State (SCIID) in Ado-Ekiti.
“Now, we are hearing that he has been transferred to SCIID in Ikeja, but I don’t know how true that is,” Ajayi said.
“What I am even concerned about is my account. Access Bank should lift the restriction placed on my account. It is really affecting my business. Why should I suffer for what I know nothing about?
PRESENT SITUATION OF THINGS
FIJ made several phone calls to Felix, the IPO that handled the matter at SCIID Ado-Ekiti, but they were not answered. A text message sent to him on Friday had also not been responded to at press time.
Adeola Folahan of Access Bank, however, told FIJ the matter was receiving attention.
“I acknowledge receipt of your email about the account of AJAYI ADEWALE. It is on restriction, and I am sorry about the delayed response,” Folahan wrote.
“Kindly be informed that your request is currently receiving attention. Feedback will be communicated after thorough investigations from our end.”
Despite Folahan’s assurance of a feedback on Friday morning, Ajayi’s account is still on PND.
