Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s Maiduguri Zonal Directorate have arrested a man identified as Nuhu Dahiru for allegedly impersonating an officer of the commission and obtaining N3 million by false pretence.
The commission disclosed the arrest in a statement by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, on Monday. Dahiru was apprehended in Tashan Bama, along Bama Road, Maiduguri, Borno State, following credible intelligence that he had been parading himself as an EFCC officer to deceive members of the public.
The commission said N3 million was recovered from the suspect at the point of arrest. According to the EFCC, Dahiru had been using the false identity to defraud unsuspecting members of the public before operatives moved in.
The EFCC said Dahiru will be charged to court once investigations are concluded.
The case adds to a recurring pattern of impersonation-related fraud in Nigeria, where fraudsters exploit public fear of anti-graft agencies to extort money under threat of prosecution. Such schemes typically involve suspects presenting fabricated identification or threatening victims with arrest unless payments are made, a tactic that has drawn repeated warnings from the EFCC to the public to verify the identity of anyone claiming to act on its behalf.
The Maiduguri Zonal Directorate covers Borno and neighbouring northeastern states, an area where the commission has stepped up enforcement against economic crimes in recent years even as security agencies remain focused on counter-insurgency operations in the region.
The EFCC has not disclosed further details on how the fraud was carried out or the number of victims involved, and investigations are ongoing.
