Nigerian Man Swindled 300 Women Of Crores On Promises Of Marriage: Report

On May 27, the Uttar Pradesh Police reportedly detained a Nigerian national living in Delhi on charges of defrauding at least 300 women and defrauding them of lakhs of dollars under the guise of marriage. According to officials, the accused befriended women on social media and matrimonial services, where he introduced himself as a non-resident Indian (NRI) living in Canada.

The accused, Garuba Galumje (38), a Nigerian national, was caught by investigators from the cyber crime police station in Noida while residing in the Kishan Garh neighbourhood of South Delhi.

Inspector Reeta Yadav, the in-charge of the Noida cyber crime police station, explained that the accused was apprehended after a woman in the Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh filed a complaint. He added that the woman had registered for marriage on the Jeevansathi website and an individual, Sanjay Singh, approached her over the website and presented himself as an Indo-Canadian NRI.

Yadav informed the reporters that the man ultimately acquired her trust and made emotional appeals as he duped her into sending a total of 60 lakh into his various bank accounts in multiple payments before she realised the deception.

Nigerian Man Held For Cheating 300 Women

When the situation was brought to the attention of the police, an investigation was launched, and the perpetrator was traced down and apprehended in Delhi, according to the inspector who led the cyber police squad.

During the course of questioning, the authorities discovered a number of similar cases involving Garuba. He allegedly defrauded around 300 women by targeting them on major websites and defrauding them of millions of dollars. To deceive women on social media and matrimonial services, he used profile photographs of smart-looking men rather than his own.

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Garuba had originally arrived in India in February 2019 on a six-month visa to conduct commerce involving human hair and ready-made clothing, according to authorities. He returned to India on March 18 on a medical visa which is valid till May 22, but authorities say he overstayed and relocated multiple times during that time. "Garuba has been using international money exchange firms to transfer the fraud money to his family members in Nigeria," authorities said.

During the arrest, police allegedly discovered a passport, seven cellphones, and 15 photocopies of documents, including counterfeit letters from the Bank of Thailand, the National Bank of Dubai, Interpol, the US Department of State, and the FBI.

According to officials, a FIR has been filed against the accused under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 419 (cheating by impersonation), and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code, as well as the rules of the Information Technology Act.