What A Man Can Do... Lebanese woman leads gang operating as EFCC officials

This is the end of the road for a 32-year-old Lebanese woman, Amira Abdallahi, who is the alleged leader of a gang of fraudsters and robbers that has been impersonating operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), as she and five other members of her gang has been nabbed by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Lagos Police Command.

The sum of N20 million cash and other stolen items including three Toyota Highlander jeeps, a Toyota Sienna 2012 model, Toyota 4 Runner, one unregistered Toyota Camry saloon car,  one single-barrelled pistol with four cartridges and a Bryco pistol with six rounds of 5.56mm ammunition, were recovered from the gang whose other members include Princewill Eze, 55, Daniel Okpara, 30, Paul Irior, 37, Bassey Ekpenyoung, 39 and Royal Nwabuike, 32.

The gang, according to the police, often disguised as officials of the anti-graft commission by wearing its branded vests while on their operations.

It was gathered that they allegedly defrauded some Bureau de Change outlets in Lagos and Abuja in the process.

First to be arrested was Eze who was arrested SARS operatives on February 27 at his house in the VGC, Ajah area of Lagos, and his confession led to the arrest of other suspects, including Abdallahi.

While being paraded by the police, Abdallahi, whose father is a Lebanese and mother is from Ishan, Edo State, said she had done six deals with them where she realised about N10m.

She said:

"I was born in Nigeria and I grew up in Lagos. I stay in Lekki area with my family. I am married with five daughters. The first money I got from the deals was $5,000. I could not stop because the money was tempting.

I was formerly doing interior decorations work. That was how I met Eze, who is nicknamed Senator. I did some interior design jobs for him in a hotel he owned. That was around March 2014.

I had done about six deals with the gang. My role is just to talk on phone with our would-be victims. They think I am a foreigner, and they are willing to trust us.

I have made about N10m so far, but all the accounts have been drained now. I handed everything over to the police."