Nigerian Arrested For Defrauding Vietnamese (Photo)

The Togolese Police have arrested a 32-year-old Nigerian for allegedly defrauding a Vietnamese business woman to the tune of $22,000. The suspect, Peter Thaddeus Chikwuma, was arrested in Togo on Tuesday when he went to that country to purchase a Jeep Cherokee with the Vietnamese woman�s money. The woman�s name was not given by the police. Briefing journalists in Accra Thursday, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Stephen Kofi Ahiatafu, said Chikwuma took the money from the victim under the pretext of selling scrap metals to her. After the suspect had been arrested in Togo, the Togolese police handed him over to the Adenta Police on April 16, 2013. He said Chikwuma, who had been living in Ghana for the past five years, had contacts with the Vietnamese business woman through the Internet. Mr Ahiatafu said as part of his plan to defraud the woman, Chikwuma told her that he was a business man who supplied auto parts to interested people. The suspect also claimed that he owned a company called Unibec Complex Mining Company which dealt in real scrap. The woman expressed interest in buying the scrap metals and paid $22,000 into Chikwuma�s account. On March 27, 2013, the woman arrived in Ghana from Vietnam to collect the scraps. Chikwuma was said to have met the woman at the Kotoka International Airport and took her to a hotel at Adenta in Accra. While the woman was at the hotel, Chikwuma left Ghana for Togo, where he had earlier made arrangements to buy a Jeep Cherokee for $8,000. While in Togo, the suspect called the Vietnamese woman to demand an additional $5,000 from her as transportation fee for the scraps. According to Mr Ahiatafu, the woman suspected foul play after three men had showed up at her hotel to collet the money. He said the victim notified the Adenta Police, who arrested the three men and later sent signals to the Togolese police, who also arrested Chikwuma.