By Tola Gbadamosi
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A 53-year-old electrician, Temidayo Olagundoye, has confessed that he went into crime because he was duped.
Olagundoye, who is the leader of a counterfeit currency syndicate, was paraded alongside 47 suspected criminals by the Ondo State Security outfit codenamed Amotekun, in Akure, the state capital.
In an interview, the suspect said that his gang had defrauded 16 victims.
According to him,” I have been involved in one-chance operation and defrauding people for over three years. Our route is along the Ondo/Akure/Osogbo/Ife highway.
“After some unsuspecting passengers might have boarded our vehicles, I will ask one of my gang members what is inside the bag with him? And he will respond that it is dollars with a charm on it.
“We do get the fake dollars from Lagos. About 16 people have fallen into our trick, with N260,000, being our highest catch.
“The charm we put on the fake dollars is not real; it was just to deceive our victims.
“I used to be an electrician, but I was duped in Abuja. After I was duped, I decided to also dupe people.”
The Commander of Amotekun in the state, Chief Adetunji Adeleye, while narrating how the suspected one-chance taxi operators were apprehended, said, “There is this syndicate that specialises in what is called ‘one-chance’ in local parlance.
“So, we were able to put some of our men in one of the vehicles, and as we talk today, out of the ten vehicles they use, we were able to retrieve three, and the kingpin of the criminal activities has been arrested and is here on parade.
“They have a herbalist who deceives them by telling customers of theirs that they can produce dollars for them. But you can see that they are counterfeit dollars.
“So, they collected naira from them in exchange for counterfeit dollars. So, we were able to break their cartel, and you can see the pots and charms they use in hypnotising their customers.
“All they need to tell the victims, is to go home and bring all their valuables for these counterfeit dollars.”
Adeleye said that the suspect and others already profiled would soon be charged to court for prosecution.