The Gombe State Police Command has arrested two suspects, Habu Kabir and Iliya Amos, for allegedly impersonating officials of the Internal Revenue Service. The suspects were arrested for defrauding intending hajj pilgrims of their tax clearance.
Parading the suspects before journalists, the Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Mahid Abubakar, revealed that the suspects had prior to their arrest, defrauded some persons of ₦30,000. He added that both suspects confessed to the alleged offence voluntarily and will be charged upon the conclusion of investigation.
According to Abubakar, the case was reported to the Gombe Divisional Police Headquarters by an official of the Gombe State Internal Revenue Service. He explained that on May 20, 2023, Habu Muhammad Kabir had gone to the hajj orientation camp at Government Arabic Teachers College, Gombe, and presented himself to the staff and intending pilgrims as a staff of the internal service deployed to collect revenue from intending pilgrims.
Detectives from the Gombe division swung into action and were able to arrest the suspect, Habu Muhammad Kabir. During interrogation, the suspect confessed to having forged the agency’s ID cards, receipts and stamps and collected the sum of ₦30,000 from two persons, ₦15,000 each for registration. The suspect conspired with Iliya Amos to produce a fake receipt for him after providing him with a copy of the original receipt.
Exhibits recovered from the suspects include two laptops, one white HP printer, one stamp and its pad, one forged ID card bearing the photograph of Habu Muhammad Kabir but the name of Mustapha Muhammad Bello, some pieces of the forged receipts and the sum of ₦30,000.
The Executive Director of the service in charge of standard and compliance, Nuhu Bulus, expressed his concern at the alarming rate of counterfeiters. He described the acts as a dangerous trend, adding that following dwindling federal allocation, states were making attempts to increase revenue to deliver the dividends of democracy, and such leakages were worrisome.
In conclusion, this arrest serves as a warning to others who might be considering such illegal acts. The Police Commissioner in Gombe, CP Oqua Etim, has assured the residents of the state that his men will continue to do everything humanly possible to arrest fraudulent individuals and bring them to justice.
