I Was Deceived To Join Fraudulent Gang ‘Hustle Kingdom’ In Delta While Seeking Funds To Study In Egypt — Islamic Cleric
Gbolahan was among the 123 suspected fraudsters that were arrested after a raid conducted by soldiers from the 3 Battalion of the Nigerian Army last week.
An Islamic cleric simply identified as Gbolahan has narrated how he was lured by his friend to join a training centre, known as ‘Hustle Kingdom’ controlled by a group of internet fraudsters, commonly known as “Yahoo Boys” in Delta State.
Gbolahan was among the 123 suspected fraudsters that were arrested after a raid conducted by soldiers from the 3 Battalion of the Nigerian Army last week.
The suspects were apprehended at the Army Estate in Effurun and subsequently handed over to the Ekpan Police Divisional Headquarters in Uvwie Local Government Area.
The suspects, aged between 17 and 25, were members of a notorious cybercrime syndicate known as “HK” (Hustle Kingdom), which operates as a training school for internet fraud activities.
Many of the young men were reportedly deceived into joining the syndicate under the guise of learning Bitcoin and forex trading, only to find themselves ensnared in fraudulent schemes run by the “HK” network.
Speaking in a video uploaded on X by Delta State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Bright Edafe, Gbolahan mentioned that his ordeals started when he sought financial assistance from his friend to further his Islamic Education in Cairo, Egypt.
He claimed that when he refused to join the unlawful group, he was nearly killed, leaving him with no choice but to go corporate. He stated that he had been refused access to any of his relatives in the last nine months.
He narrated: “I am from Ibadan. I just graduated from an Islamic school. After I finished Islamic school, I was planning to go to Cairo. I have N100,000 and I need N150,000 to process. And I met my friend who aksed me to come to Warri so that he would give me the money. So when I got to Warri, a vehicle came and picked me up at the park. They carried me to another house. When I reached there they looked all the doors. They did not allow us to go out to see people or to buy anything.
“After that, they told me that I wouldn’t come and they would not allow me to go out again until I chased out $10,000. And I asked them how did I wanted to make $10,000 me that I need N10,000. They said I should not worry that they would teach me how to make money.
“When I said I want to return back home, they now beat me till I shit(defecate) for body. After I con shit for my body, they stopped the beating. I told them that I wanted to see my friend because he was the one who brought me here. I told them I am Alfa(Islamic cleric) and I always do prayer for that my friend. And then that my friend came and slapt me. He said they should beat me again until I was spitting blood for mouth. They told me that I did not have chance to go out again.
“I have been inside for nine months. I did not have access to call my parents, they did not know where I am. Nobody knows,” he added.
He added that he was taught hacking and ‘romance scam’ during his time at the centre.
He continued: “After they taught me how to hack, I started ‘bumbing’. The bumbing is that they will give us the page where all those white people are, so we would be commenting on their section that they should add us. That we love their posts and everything they share. After they add us, we will put them for relationship that we love them. After that, we will now bill them that we are in serious problems that they should help us.”
