Inside The Lagos Apartment Where 106 Youths Were Lured Into Fake University Scheme
What appeared to be a university operating in Lagos has turned out to be a suspected fake institution run from a three-bedroom apartment, where 106 youths were allegedly lured with promises of admission into a foreign university.
Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Badagry Area Command, uncovered the operation during a raid on the apartment located in Ilado, Olorunda Local Council Development Area, in the early hours of Monday.
The operation also led to the arrest of the alleged proprietor, who is accused of recruiting prospective students from different parts of Nigeria and neighbouring West African countries through online platforms.
According to the NSCDC, the suspected institution had no official name, registration, signboard or recognised campus, yet allegedly presented itself online as a distance-learning centre affiliated with a foreign university.
Speaking on the operation, the Badagry Area Commander, Chief Superintendent Gbenga Ekunola, said the raid followed several days of intelligence gathering and covert surveillance.
“We received reliable intelligence regarding the activities at the location. Our operatives kept the premises under surveillance for several days before carrying out the operation. The proprietor has been arrested and is assisting with our investigation, while the students have been placed under protective custody,” he said.
Preliminary investigations showed that most of the rescued youths, aged between 19 and 24, were recruited from states including Kogi, Oyo and several northern states.
Others reportedly travelled from neighbouring countries such as Niger, Cameroon and Togo.
Investigators alleged that the victims paid between ₦200,000 and ₦1.5 million as admission and processing fees, while some foreign nationals reportedly paid between $400 and $500 after being promised admission into a foreign higher institution.
The NSCDC also discovered that participants were allegedly encouraged to recruit additional students in exchange for financial commissions, in what investigators said resembled a Ponzi or chain-marketing scheme.
One of the rescued youths reportedly told investigators that after paying $400 to enrol, he persuaded his brother in Kogi State to join the programme and had already begun receiving referral commissions.
Further findings indicated that some participants were allegedly involved in promoting unidentified products online while earning commissions from product sales and new recruitments.
Ekunola expressed concern that many parents had no idea what their children were actually doing in Badagry.
“We have begun contacting their families. One parent told us her child had informed the family that he travelled to Badagry to learn a trade, not to attend a university. That clearly shows many parents had no idea what was really going on,” he said.
He added that all 106 rescued youths would be profiled before being reunited with their families after investigations, while anyone found culpable would face prosecution.
The NSCDC said investigations have been expanded to identify other collaborators and determine whether similar schemes are operating in other parts of the country.
Follow us for more news updates.
Author
