A three-bedroom apartment in Ilado, Badagry, Lagos State, has been uncovered as the centre of an alleged fake university admission scheme that lured 106 youths from Nigeria and neighbouring West African countries with promises of foreign academic opportunities.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Badagry Area Command, said the operation was uncovered after days of intelligence gathering and covert surveillance, leading to the arrest of the alleged proprietor and the rescue of the youths.
According to the NSCDC, the suspected institution operated without an official name, registration, signboard or recognised campus, but allegedly presented itself online as a distance-learning centre affiliated with a foreign university.
The Badagry Area Commander of the NSCDC, Chief Superintendent Gbenga Ekunola, said the raid was carried out yesterday following credible information received by the corps about activities at the apartment.
Investigations revealed that the rescued youths, mostly aged between 19 and 24, were recruited from different parts of Nigeria, including Kogi, Oyo and some northern states, while others reportedly came from neighbouring countries such as Niger, Cameroon and Togo after being contacted online.
The corps said the victims paid between ₦200,000 and ₦1.5 million for admission and processing fees, while some foreign nationals reportedly paid between $400 and $500 after being promised admission into a foreign tertiary institution.
The NSCDC said the alleged admission arrangement was linked to a recruitment structure that required participants to bring in more students in exchange for commissions.
According to investigators, the scheme allegedly operated like a Ponzi or chain-marketing arrangement, with participants promised increasing financial rewards based on the number of people they recruited into the programme.
The command also uncovered another layer of the operation, alleging that some participants were engaged in promoting unidentified products online while earning commissions from product sales and recruitment activities.
Expressing concern over the incident, Ekunola said many parents were unaware of the actual activities their children were involved in, as some believed they had travelled to Badagry to learn a trade.
“We have started contacting their families. One parent told us her child informed the family that he came to Badagry to learn a trade, not to attend a university. That shows many of these parents were completely unaware,” he said.
The area commander said the rescued youths would be profiled before being reunited with their families, adding that anyone found culpable in operating the alleged fake institution would be prosecuted.
The NSCDC said investigations had been expanded to identify other members of the network and determine whether similar operations exist in other parts of the country.