US Embassy nabs fake Glo staff, accomplice with fake documents

Officials of the United States Consulate General Office in Victoria Island, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria, have apprehended a 27-year old man, Henry Amaralaegbu, who claimed to be a staff of Globacom Telecommunication Ltd for forging documents to obtain a visa.

Also nabbed with him at the embassy was one Oluwatobi Akinyele, 25, whom Amaralaegbu allegedly told the embassy officials helped him to procured the fake documents.

A Police source said that following the incident, the embassy officials contacted the CP Ibrahim Lamorde in charge of the Police Special Fraud Unit, PSFU, in Ikoyi, Lagos, about the development who dispatched a team led by Supol Lawal Audu to the embassy to arrest the suspects.

The suspects were charged before an Igbosere Magistrate Court on a three-count charge of felony to wit, forgery and impersionation.

Police Counsel, Supol Lawal Audi, informed the court in charge No T/18/2018 that the accused persons committed the crime on 9 January, 2018 at the United States Consulate General Office at 2, Walter Harrington Crescent, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Audu told the court that Amaralaegbu and Akinyele went to the American Embassy in Lagos and that while Akinyele hang around the embassy premises and handed over the fake letter of invitation and Globacom Telecommunication Ltd employment letter to Amaralaegbu to submit to the officials to obtain US visa, the CCTV cameras had captured him while he was handing over the documents to his accomplice.

Audu said that luck, however, ran against Amaralaegbu when the officials scanned the documents and discovered that they were fake.

He said that when Amaralaegbu was questioned how he came about the fake documents, he quickly pointed his hands outside and told the officials that the person who procured the documents for him was outside the building and led the officials to arrest Akinyele.

Audu said that the offences the accused committed were punishable under sections 411, 363(1)(b) and 380 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.

The accused pleaded not guilty to the alleged Crime and Magistrate Aro Lambo granted them bail in the sum of N100,000 each with two sureties in like sum and adjourned the case till 14 March, 2018 for mention and ordered that the defendants be kept at Ikoyi Prison till they fulfilled their bail conditions.