Lagos: Police uncover Yahoo school

*Arrest 10 suspects, including 2 siblings, underage trainee

THE Lagos State Police Command, yesterday, said it has uncovered a building in the Iju area of Lagos State used for internet fraud training

Popularly called “Yahoo School," the command said four Yahoo  experts, among them two siblings,  who had been running the school, were arrested alongside six trainees, who  were undergoing training in cybercrime and fraud during the operation.

Identities of the main suspects  were given as Chibuike Ihejika, 23; Stanley Ihejika, 22; Obiora Oyediba, 26 and Emmanuel Oyedibe, 25, while the six trainees’ are  Okorie Henry, Otoh Chisom, 20; Okeke Kwufrochikwu, 26; Uchenna Obeji, 26; Minachi Udochukwu, 12 and Chinedu Ukachukwu, 23.      

The underage trainee, Ugochukwu, according to the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hudenyin, had healing marks of injuries on his body allegedly inflicted on him by the main principal suspect, to compel him into the commission of the criminal acts.

Preliminary investigations, according to him, revealed that the principal suspects of the facility recruited their trainees from Anambra State and engaged them to commit internet fraud and other related crimes.  

He said the proceeds from their fraudulent activities were   confiscated by the principal suspects.

Hudenyin said: “All suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Yaba for further discreet investigation and prosecution.  

“Efforts are ongoing to apprehend the sponsors, who financed the trainees’ enrollment in the school as well as the owner of the facility where these criminal and illegal activities took place. 

"The owner of the facility is hereby warned in his own interest to turn himself in immediately at the SCID Panti from wherever he is hiding. The Lagos State Police Command will ensure that all suspects are charged to court for prosecution upon the conclusion of the investigation into the case.”