A 35-year-old online vendor, Modupeola Bamisade, has been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly duping more than 100 customers in a gadget sales scheme reportedly worth over N500 million.
Bamisade, according to investigators, posed as a discount reseller of premium Apple products, advertising iPhones, iPads and related devices at half-price to entice eager buyers.
A police source yesterday that the suspect leveraged popular social media influencers to amplify her supposed sales, drawing scores of customers who paid for devices that were never delivered.
“She usually pushes adverts online offering about 50 percent off Apple products.
Influencers help circulate the campaigns and unsuspecting buyers pay in advance,” the source said.
The officers alleged that after collecting payments running into hundreds of millions, Bamisade failed to supply the phones and resorted instead to a string of excuses to deflect complaints.
“Over 100 victims were scammed. Some paid hundreds of thousands, others millions.
She kept assuring buyers that their devices had arrived and would be delivered, only to disappear or offer flimsy explanations,” the officer added.
Another police source disclosed that the suspect’s arrest followed growing alarm among influencers who had unknowingly served as channels to reach victims.
“One of the influencers who advertised for her reported the matter after receiving numerous complaints. That led to her arrest,” the officer said.
Several victims later stormed the command headquarters to identify the suspect.
“One victim said she paid a million naira. She was told the phone was already with a rider, but the courier never materialised.
Each time she called, she got a different story,” the source recounted.
Police said Bamisade allegedly confessed to using influencers as gateways to buyers during preliminary interrogation.
Investigations into the alleged fraud are ongoing, while efforts to recover funds and trace accomplices continue.