The Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) of the Guyana Police Force on Friday warned of a sharp rise in cases where suspected Nigerian nationals who are in the country illegally as well as some out of Guyana, are working with local accomplices to carry out scams and pyramid schemes on unsuspecting persons.
In a statement, SOCU said that “Package Delivery” and “Romance” scams became more prominent during the COVID-19 pandemic as scammers targeted primarily women via several social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, as well as online dating sites.
It explained that the modus operandi used by the scammers is to befriend unsuspecting women via the digital platforms using fake profiles of Caucasian men with luxury vehicles and large sums of cash. “After communicating with the victim for some time to build trust with their `new friend’ or `love interest’, the scammer promises the intended victim, some form of assistance,” it said, while noting that in most instances it is supposedly a package containing valuable gift items, such as designer clothing, jewellery, televisions, cell phones, other electronic devices and money.
“The victim is usually contacted by a local associate of the scammer, confirming the arrival of the package and requesting their personal contact and other information. The intended victim is subsequently contacted again and requested to deposit money to a specified local Bank Account or send via a Money Transfer Agency or the Guyana Post Office Corporation. They inform the victim that the payment is required to cover brokerage fees, customs duties, penalties and/or shipping charges for the package(s), which are supposedly found on inspection to contain high valued items. Once the payment is made, the scammers discontinue all contact with the victim(s) who are being robbed of hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
SOCU called on the public not to fall prey if approached via email, SMS or social media with promises of gifts or COVID-19 related financial or other assistance once it is not from a government or other legitimate source, since it may be a scam.
It also advised that persons not share any personal information, or transfer or deposit money into the bank account of persons they meet online and do not know very well.
Anyone who believes that they are a victim of the scams are advised to make an immediate report to the police.
Last November, a Nigerian national, Uche Raymond Okoye, also known as Uche Parker, was jailed after he admitted to obtaining over $6 million from a local woman through a scam.
The charges against Okoye stated that on 10 occasions between October 15 and November 16, 2020, he obtained sums totaling $6,287,900 from Surujdai Balkaran, by falsely claiming that he was in possession of a package intended for her.
He confessed during his trial.
The Nigerian national was also being prosecuted against by SOCU on several other fraud charges.
At the time the police said a criminal network had been operating the scams and pyramid schemes in Guyana and had links to Argentina, Brazil, Nigeria, Paraguay, Peru, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Venezuela, among other countries.
SOCU’s case was that Okoye would send Facebook friend requests to the women and subsequently seek to communicate with them via WhatsApp. His trial had heard that the women were told of some very expensive gifts being sent to them and were advised to make contact with someone purporting to be employed at a shipping company about a box having arrived at the airport for them. The court was further told of women being informed that they would have to pay various sums of money in order to uplift the box. It was further disclosed that Balkaran made several payments and after each occasion they were told of another reason more funds were needed to be transferred.
Meanwhile, SOCU’s mention of suspected Nigerian nationals being involved in such scams prompted a response on Saturday from the African Caribbean Chamber of Trade, Commerce and Industry, which said the Nigerian community in Guyana has one of the lowest crime rates of any migrant community.
The Chamber, which identified itself as a representative body for Nigerians in Guyana, said it was “shocked at the false branding” of the SOCU statement.
The Chamber said in a statement that Nigeria contributes US$14 million annually to the country’s tourism sector via educational tourism, which sees close to 1,000 Nigerian students being educated in Guyana.
It further noted that the Nigerian Community in Guyana comprises medical professionals and “is the second largest contributor to Guyana’s medical profession by any migrant community in Guyana.”
The Nigerian community in Guyana also comprises professionals in engineering, education, security and business (entrepreneurs).
“The Nigerian community has always worked with government agencies and indeed the police in the reduction of criminality of any kind within its community and therefore we are shocked at the false branding,” the Chamber said.
“We wish to assure the government and indeed the good people of Guyana that our community stands ready to work with all organizations and groups in furtherance of a crime-free Guyana,” it added.
