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Following a tip-off, the Niger State Police Command has apprehended and paraded a 57-year-old former convict, Mohammed Bello, for allegedly collecting N2.2 million from 47 job-seekers.
        Bello, who resides in Maitumbi area of Bosso Local Government Area in the state, was trailed and apprehended by a team of policemen attached to the Kpakungu Division while trying to escape. The suspect had allegedly paraded himself as an employer of labour and promised to secure employment for his victims in Nigeria Customs, Immigration, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), a specific bank and other public and private establishments. He was alleged to have collected from his victims sums of money between N40,000 and N70,000 to process their application forms. While responding to questions from reporters while been paraded on Wednesday, Bello said he had been duping applicants for the past eight years until he found himself again in police net. He said: “I have three wives and 16 children. I am trying to raise money to train my children. I never knew I will be arrested by the police. Now nobody will take care of my wives and children. I am finished. I have been collecting money from innocent job-seekers without getting the job eventually. But they still trust me and pay the processing fee for the past eight years. Bello, however, claimed he regretted his actions. He said: “I have disappointed my wives and my children, and pray they will forgive me. I think I have learnt my lesson in a hard way. I had repented after being convicted for a similar offence in the past. I don’t know what pushed me again to start the employment scam. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Muhammad Abubakar, said the suspect confessed to the crime. The matter would be charged to court after investigation,” he said.