The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has uncovered a fraudulent syndicate scamming foreign companies with fake NAFDAC documents. The agency’s Director-General, Mojisola Adeyeye, revealed this during a press conference on Friday.
The prime suspect, Ikoro Ifendu, a native of Amamba Village, Abiriba in Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State, was arrested on February 7, 2025, at Ogborn Hills, Aba, Abia State. Adeyeye explained that Ifendu, who holds only an SSCE qualification and trades in clothing materials, had been impersonating NAFDAC officials to defraud foreign companies of significant sums of money. One of the victims of the scheme was Thani Almaeeni Trading Group from Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Describing how the syndicate operated, Adeyeye said, “The fraudsters ran a complex three-pronged scheme involving a buyer, a bank, and a lawyer. They would contact foreign companies wishing to import goods into Nigeria, then introduce them to a fake bank for payment processing.
The bank would claim that the goods required NAFDAC approval, after which the companies would be referred to a fraudulent lawyer who would collect payments in installments and issue counterfeit NAFDAC certificates and receipts.”
It was revealed that over $950,000 had been deposited into the fraudster’s Nigerian accounts, with an additional $450,000 traced to offshore accounts in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
Adeyeye also confirmed that the fraudsters had issued several forged documents, including a “Certificate of Registration for dried fish (seafood)” with a fake NAFDAC registration number, A2-7059, which was issued to Thani Almaeeni Trading Group in Abu Dhabi.
