A 31- year-old man, Akharamen Ehizokhai, alleged to have hacked into the website of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has been arrested by the Edo State Police Command.
The alleged fraudster was said to have opened a website where he posted fake questions and answers of Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) for candidates on agreed fees.
He allegedly charged per subject and had been involved in the illicit deal for two years. On the internet, the suspect allegedly collected N5,000 per subject.
Some of the students who got in touch with the suspect were said to have been directed to pay into a bank account with the name Akharamen Ehizokhai Favour.
Following persistent reports by parents and candidates over the alleged fraudulent activities of the suspect in Edo and neighbouring states, crack detectives from the Edo Command were detailed to trail him. Consequently, he was arrested in Ekpoma.
He was paraded by the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Funso Adebanjo. The suspect admitted to have committed the crime, saying the purpose was to make money by defrauding unsuspecting WAEC candidates.
According to him, “ I have been into this business for some time now and it is because I have no other means of livelihood. I am sorry and I want God to help me out of this problem”.
Adebanjo described the suspect as the leader of a syndicate that tracks various websites of institutions in the country. “He has been into this business for over a year as we gathered and his activities have frustrated many candidates who wanted to pass exams through quick means. We got information about him and trailed him.
This is another 419 and because a lot of our children these days don’t want to read for exams they fall victims. I want to use this opportunity to advise students to read their books or face failure.
And it is also unfortunate that sometimes parents indulge in this illicit act by giving their children money to pay people like this. This is wrong and that is why we are noticing lots of failures these days in examinations and that is not good for our country. Parents must resist the temptation of ensuring that their children pass exams by all means so that we will put this kind people out of job. We are going to charge him to court for fraud”.
Parading 32 other suspects, Adebanjo stated that five were arrested for robbery, nine for stealing, two for cultism and unlawful possession of firearm, one for abduction and two for fraud. The Police Commissioner listed the items recovered from the suspects to include 12 guns, five live ammunition, 67 cartridges, seven laptop computers and two vehicles.
