The police in Lagos have arrested Onyeabuchi, the son of actor John ‘Mr Ibu’ Okafor, and Jasmine Okekeagwu, his adopted daughter, over an alleged N55 million fraud. The arrest comes after the actor revealed his battle with an undisclosed illness and appealed for assistance, which led to donations from various individuals for his surgeries and treatment.
Unfortunately, despite undergoing seven surgeries, Mr. Ibu’s leg was amputated. Last year, Stella-Maris Okafor, the actor’s wife, accused Jasmine of diverting funds meant for Mr. Ibu’s surgery.
On Thursday, the Federal Criminal Investigation Department confirmed the arrest of Onyeabuchi and Jasmine in connection with the alleged fraud.
According to the department, the actor’s son and adopted daughter conspired to defraud him of the N55 million donated for his medical treatment.
The police also stated that they have recovered the stolen amount from the actor’s medical fundraising bank account. The investigation revealed that a public fundraising initiative was launched to gather funds for Mr. Ibu’s medical bills.
However, Onyeabuchi and Jasmine manipulated Mrs. Okafor, gained control of the actor’s phone, and hacked into his banking details.
They then installed mobile banking applications on Onyeabuchi’s phone and wiped off the original applications on the actor’s phone.
This allowed them to take charge of the actor’s banking activities related to the donated funds. Through their fraudulent actions, Onyeabuchi and Jasmine transferred funds from the actor’s public fundraising account to Onyeabuchi’s personal bank account.
Forensic analysis confirmed that a total of N55 million was successfully transferred before their arrest. Text messages exchanged between the two suspects on WhatsApp provided evidence of their alleged conspiracy and fraud.
The investigation also uncovered plans by Onyeabuchi and Jasmine to escape to the UK, where they intended to settle with the proceeds of their crime.
They had even applied for UK visas prior to their arrest. The stolen N50 million was traced to Onyeabuchi’s bank account, and it was discovered that they had spent N5 million on questionable transactions.
On Thursday, the suspects were charged to court. This incident follows a previous incident where Jasmine was invited by the police amid claims that she withdrew N300 million from the actor’s donation account.
The case continues to unfold as the legal process takes its course.
Article updated 6 days ago. Content is written and modified by multiple authors.
