EFCC Official ‘Poses As Estate Agent To Scam’ Lady Of N9.48m Rent In Abuja

An Abuja-based administrative worker, identified as Christiana Oluyomi (not real name), has accused an official of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Miracle Essien James, of orchestrating a fraudulent house rental deal that cost her N9,480,000.00.

According to a report by Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), Oluyomi, who spoke on Thursday, recounted how what began as a routine search for accommodation in January devolved into what she described as a web of deception, disappearance and institutional obstruction.

“In January, I was looking for an apartment to rent. So, a friend of mine introduced me to a house agent called Miracle,” she said.

According to her, after outlining her housing needs, James sent her pictures of a property which she found satisfactory.

“After I went through the pictures he sent to me, I liked the house and then told him I would pay for that. I asked if the house had two units in the same block of flats, and he said he’d make an inquiry from the management in charge of that particular house,” she explained.

Oluyomi said she later requested a physical inspection of the property.

“After everything, I told him I would like to see the house. So, we agreed on that and I paid N15,000 for the inspection fee on January 12.”

Following the inspection, she proceeded with documentation and payment for the apartment, which she intended to share with a colleague.

“After I inspected the house, I told him I liked the place. He then sent me some forms to fill in. I did that and sent them back to him immediately,” she said.

“After all that, I told him I would like to negotiate the price of the apartment since I would be renting two bedrooms; one for me and one for my colleague.”

She added that negotiations were concluded through a third party introduced by James, after which she was asked to make full payment into a different account.

“So, they sent separate account details different from the one I paid the inspection fee into. I made a total payment of N9,480,000 into the account. The total payment was made on January 12 and 13, respectively.”

Trouble began when the agreed date for handing over the apartment keys passed without any sign of the agent or property managers.

“A week later, when it was time for me to collect the keys to the apartment, I didn’t get them,” she said.

“On the agreed day, time and place, I went there, but nobody was present.”

Efforts to reach James proved futile.

“When I couldn’t find anyone to give me the keys as initially agreed, I called James. He said he would reach out to the person who was supposed to hand over the keys, but throughout the day, he couldn’t get through.”

She said a follow-up visits raised further suspicions.

“The following day, we visited the apartment again, but I discovered that a lot of things were not right. Eventually, everything turned out to be a scam.”

Oluyomi reported the matter to the Divisional Police Station in Utako, Abuja, where she said events took an unexpected turn.

“At the station, we explained everything to the police, and the officers said James was the first suspect because he introduced me to the house and encouraged me to make full payment,” she said.

“James was desperately trying to exonerate himself by giving flimsy excuses.”

She alleged that when the police attempted to detain him, he contacted a colleague within the EFCC.

“So, when the police were about to detain him, he quickly called one of his EFCC colleagues, who immediately came to the station. When that colleague arrived, he secured his bail and promised to produce him whenever needed.”

Following his release, Oluyomi said James disappeared.

“Ever since James was taken from the police station, he disappeared. I never set my eyes on him again.”

She added that he resurfaced weeks later with assurances that yielded no results.

“After a month of unexplained disappearance, James reached out again, apologised and said he was working with his EFCC colleagues to recover the money.”

“Two months later, I didn’t hear anything from him. When I eventually reached out, he gave another excuse, claiming investigations were ongoing and that they had tracked the suspects to a location.”

She accused him of repeatedly providing misleading information.

“He kept manufacturing different stories and excuses, and he has refused to refund my money up till now.”

Frustrated by the lack of progress, Oluyomi said she escalated the matter to the EFCC headquarters, where she met with a senior official.

“When I got there with my lawyer, I was directed to Michael Obinna, the Head of Security. He is James’ direct boss,” she said.

“When I explained everything to Obinna, he apologised and empathised with me. He then called James and instructed him to refund my money immediately.”

She claimed that James agreed to refund part of the money but failed to follow through.

“Right there, James agreed and promised to make an initial deposit of N4 million, but he has not done so.”

Oluyomi further alleged that subsequent engagements revealed inconsistencies in James’ claims.

“James was given a deadline, which was last Friday, but he failed to honour his promise,” she said.

“On Friday, he called me and claimed he was at a bank, saying he had applied for a loan to make the payment, but it had not been approved.”

However, she said this claim was later contradicted.

“So, on Monday, when my lawyer spoke with him, we discovered through his own confession that he never applied for any loan. It was all a lie.”

She also accused some EFCC officials of obstructing efforts to recover her money.

“When we got there and I explained everything, the head of cybercrime said James had told him a completely different story. He also said James would not honour any police invitation unless the police formally wrote to them,” she said.

“The head of cybercrime and Essien, another colleague of James, were trying to block every effort to recover my money.”

She alleged verbal harassment during one of the encounters.

“Essien verbally assaulted me. He said he disliked the way I spoke and was unnecessarily aggressive. He repeatedly shut me down and called me a troublesome woman.”

“All I want is to recover my money and ensure justice is served.”

When contacted for comment, James declined to provide details, FIJ reported.

“I don’t have anything to tell you,” he said. “If you need any information, go to the EFCC office. The matter is currently under investigation. As for when she will get her money, I don’t know yet.”