Man arrested while fraudulently performing prosperity rituals on a U.S-based Nigerian (Photo)

The suspected fraudster

Officials of the Ekiti State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested a 78-year-old suspected ritualist, Lawrence Ayeni and four others inside a bush at Iwaro, Oke Ila Quarters of Ado-Ekiti, where they were performing rituals for a US-based Nigerian man, Okechukwu Omeniho, after allegedly defrauding him of N300,000.

According to The Nation, the victim, Okechukwu was believed to have been charmed, under the pretext of appeasing gods of fortunes and prosperity for him. When rescued from his captors by the NSCDC, he could not explain how he fell into the hands of the fraudsters and ritualists and committed such a huge amount of money to people he had never met before after being tricked from his base.

Donatus Ikemefuna, who is the Commandant of NSCDC, said the victim who is a businessman, hails from Owerri, Imo State but resides in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, wept uncontrollably when the suspects were paraded shortly after their arrest.

“We are encouraging any defrauded victim to come out and identify the suspects paraded or give details of their experiences so that the activities of these occultists and fraudsters can be eliminated completely,” the Commandant of NSCDC said.

Other members of the gang arrested in the operation carried out by the Counter-Terrorism and Intelligence Units of NSCDC, Ekiti Command  between 8.30am and 9.00am, include Ifashola Babatunde (44), Akin Ono (25), Yusuf Akorede (30) and Adetifa Ishola (45).