Babatunji Wusu –
- Two young men, Elvis Osakpolo Edokpain (23) and Kelly Osas Endgieen (24), were arrested for forging international certificates and engaging in online fraud.
- The suspects specialized in impersonating individuals on social media, including as a fake U.S. military officer, to scam victims.
- They used fraudulent certificates from Ghana and obtained residency permits to evade law enforcement while carrying out scams.
- The suspects confessed to conducting romance scams and laundering money through foreign bank accounts.
- They attempted to bribe police officers, paying N66 million, which was recovered by investigators.
Two suspected international fraudsters, Elvis Osakpolo Edokpain (23) and Kelly Osas Endgieen (24), were apprehended by the police in Lagos for their involvement in forging certificates from various international and African universities. The suspects were engaged in internet fraud, successfully defrauding victims and accumulating wealth through the proceeds, including exotic cars and luxurious homes.
The suspects’ downfall came after the Anti-Corruption Unit of Zone 2 in Lagos received a tip-off about a group specializing in fraudulent certificate forgery. Acting on this information, police tracked the suspects to a hotel in Lekki, Lagos, and arrested them. Upon searching their luggage, they found forged certificates from Blue Crest College in Ghana and other academic documents, which the suspects admitted to acquiring through the help of a female Nigerian resident in Ghana.
The suspects confessed that they had never attended the universities, but obtained the fake certificates to secure Ghanaian residency permits, which identified them as students of Academic City University. They paid substantial sums for the documents—26,000 Ghana cedis (approximately N1.5 million) for the certificates and permits.
Further investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in online romance scams, where they impersonated a U.S. military officer on Instagram, deceiving victims into sending money for supposed goods in Syria. They used blockchain wallets and foreign bank accounts to launder the stolen funds, which were later funneled into Nigerian accounts. Their main victims were based in countries such as Japan, Denmark, and China.
In a surprising twist, the suspects attempted to bribe the police with N66 million to secure their release. However, the police, under the direction of Assistant Inspector General Adegoke Fayoude, played along, and the bribe money was collected and documented as evidence.
Authorities are now working with the Ghanaian embassy and Interpol to investigate the suspects’ connections and identify their accomplices abroad. Despite their actions, the suspects expressed regret, blaming poverty for their criminal behavior and urging other youths to avoid fraudulent schemes and pursue honest paths to success.
