“Stay Safe”- Nigerian military issues Urgent Warning on COAS Impersonation Sc@m
The Nigerian Army has issued warning to the public about the rising cases of fraudsters impersonating the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, on social media platforms. These impostors have been using the official portrait of the COAS as their profile picture to deceive unsuspecting Nigerians.
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In a statement released on Saturday by the Director of Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, the Army disclosed that these fr@udsters have devised new tactics to exploit innocent citizens.
One of their latest schemes involves setting up online meetings on Zoom, WhatsApp, Facebook, and other social media platforms.
During these sessions, participants are asked to share specific phone numbers displayed on their screens. The impostors then engage with individuals privately and eventually defraud them.
“This is not the first time imposters have attempted to impersonate the COAS on social media platforms. However, a new trend has emerged where these fraudsters set up online meetings on various platforms, demanding that participants share certain numbers displayed on their screens.
They then engage individually with the participants and subsequently defraud them,” Nwachukwu stated.
The Army has urged Nigerians to exercise extreme caution and verify the authenticity of any engagement with individuals claiming to be the Chief of Army Staff.
Citizens are advised not to provide personal or financial information to any unknown individual, especially those claiming to be high-ranking military officers.
Furthermore, the Army has taken the unprecedented step of releasing a list of phone numbers commonly used by these fraudsters. Nigerians have been advised to report any interaction with these numbers to security agencies to prevent further scams.
List of Impersonators’ Phone Numbers are listed below.
The Nigerian Army identified the following numbers as frequently used by the scammers:
09033949238
09075323836
09074272745
08169257155
08064561495
08054138812
09161521558
09026515718
09020898622
08131333263
09077188584
08084529752
08147409236
09136497898
09024627712
07010119398
09138997224
09061549129
08163593764
07035272009
09018150412
08093524443
08088120581
The Nigerian Army has urged members of the public to report any suspicious online meetings or engagements involving these numbers.
Reports can be made through the Nigerian Army’s toll-free call center at 193 for appropriate follow-up actions.
