By Desire Emmanuel
A man who posed as a cocoa merchant and used the opportunity to defraud a businessman of the sum of N36 million in Akure, Ondo State, has been arrested by men of the state police command.
The command arrested the fraudster, whose name was given as Ilegbemi Olusola Jacob, following a petition received from the victim, Adegboyo Sunday, who said he was defrauded of ₦36 million in a fraudulent cocoa supply deal.
The command disclosed the arrest in a statement on Thursday morning, saying investigation revealed that in July 2025, the victim entered into a business relationship with the fraudster, who falsely presented himself as a cocoa merchant.
It was gathered that under this guise of being a merchant, he reportedly collected ₦36 million from the victim with a promise to supply 5.56 tonnes of cocoa beans which would be supplied from Taraba State, but failed to deliver and subsequently absconded to an unknown destination.
According to the command, while leveraging on technology and the expertise of the command’s Scorpion Squad, the operatives identified and traced the man to his hideout in Akure, where he was arrested.
He was said to have given more useful information to the operatives, especially regarding others in his network while the case had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for more discreet investigation.
He is also expected to be charged to court at the conclusion of the investigation into his nefarious activities.
