How Benue Councillor ‘Disappeared’ After Defrauding Widows, Youths Of Millions Of Naira Using Investment Scheme
by How Benue Councillor ‘Disappeared’ After Defrauding Widows, Youths Of Millions Of Naira Using Investment Scheme
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An exclusive report by SaharaReporters has uncovered how David Namstav Shirsha, a former Supervisory Councillor in the Ushongo Local Government Area of Benue State, defrauded widows and youths in the community, using an online networking business, ‘Covis Club International’. David was said to have asked women and youths in the community to invest their money in the online networking business of the organisation with the promise that they will make profits every month, to be determined by their investment capital. SaharaReporters gathered that about 35 persons were affected.
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It was learnt that some of the investors
registered with N50,000 with a promise
that they would get N10,000 as profit
every month. However, some others were
said to have lost as much as N3 million
to N5 million.
The victims include widows and youths,
who were invested in the scheme to make
ends meet.
One of the victims, Agena Robert Ande
who hails from the Ushongo Local
Government Area of Benue State, was
defrauded of the sum of N500,000 after
being invited by David to a Covis Club
International meeting held at Midland
Plaza, Mararaba in the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT).
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Ande said he lost interest upon realising
that it was a networking business but
David insisted that he should invest in it,
promising to make him one of the
beneficiaries of three Hyundai vehicles to
be given out.
According to Ande, he was introduced to
the business on March 30, 2021 when
David came to his house alongside one o
his girlfriends, Emmanuella Akperan, to
explain the process to him.He was told that if he could convince his friends and family members to join the business, his profit and turnover would increase. He said he initially and told them that he was not interested in networking business. Ande said, “He (David) introduced the business and explained to me how it works and he insisted that I should join and commit my friends and family members too, that the gains and turnover would be higher. I rebuked him and told him in clear terms that I could not do an online networking business.
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“He then said I should lend him the sum
of N500,000 to open another account wit
Covis Club under his team of pyramid/
department called the ELITES, to enable
the club see reasons to hasten the
provision of three Hyundai vehicles they
were expecting in three months’ time.
“He promised that I was going to benefit
directly from one of the vehicles hence
the account he was creating with my
money was going to be the highest paid
and qualified so far.
“I told him I would have nothing to do
with an online business of this nature. I
would send the sum of N500,000 directly
to his account based on the fact that he
was a Supervisory Councillor in my local
government during the tenure of Governor
Gabriel Suswam of Benue State.”
Findings revealed that David relocated
from the community and disappeared into
the thin air shortly after the sum of
N500,000 was transferred into his
account.
His mobile phone could not be reached
and all efforts to locate him proved futile.
It was also learnt that he printed flyers
different from the official flyers of the
company, which he was using to
manipulate his unsuspecting victims to
register and invest in the scheme.
He was also able to win the trust of many
people because of his father, who is said
to be a notable politician in the area.
Another victim, Fidel Imyon who lost
N55,000 said he was promised returns on
what he thought was an investment.
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Imyon said, “I was told that registration
for the second stage for me to start
earning profits is N55,000. I did it and I
was expecting my payment at the end of
the month but I did not get any payment.
called them and they said I should be
patient.
“One day I got N10,000 and after one
month I called them again but they did
not answer again.”
The fraud has left many people in Gboko
and Ushongo in a state of despair as the
chances of getting their money refunded
are slim.
The victims said they have formally
reported the matter at the police station i
the area but that there has been no
meaningful progress on the case so far.