On May 30, 2022, Uchechi Ewiwilem, an Ebonyi State-based businesswoman, paid N1,019,900 to Festus Basil, a self-acclaimed entrepreneur and CEO of Bas Wealth World Ltd., to help supply 50 units of kerosene burner stoves to one of her clients.

After Basil received payment, he supplied Ewiwilem’s client with two units and failed to talk about the supply of the 48 stoves still outstanding.

This then became a major problem for Ewiwilem, as the client who paid her for the stoves thought she had defrauded him.

“The customer kept pressuring me on when the remaining stoves would be delivered, and at a point, I really did not know what to do anymore,” Ewiwilem said in an interview with FIJ.

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“Any time I reached out to Basil for an update, he would not give me any positive response.

“This prompted me to start visiting most of the addresses he posted online to verify where he truly uses as his office, and it was then that I got to find out that he had left the office he once claimed to be using for his business in Ikeja, Lagos.

“It was also during the period that I got to discover that he was also into the sale of security gadgets and equipment. While I was asking questions from people on how I could locate him, I spoke with a security officer who knew him very well, and what he had to say about him was not at all encouraging.

“The security officer told me that he had scammed a lot of people. He said Basil once ran an investment venture and after scamming a whole lot of people, he ran away.

“He added that people had been visiting his former office to see how they could get their money back from him.

“Since then, I have been calling him on the phone and asking him to refund my money. He has continued to give me excuses.”

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MATTER REPORTED TO THE POLICE

Ewiwilem told FIJ that when her client got tired of asking her for a refund, he reported the matter to the police.

“At a point, my in-law had to stand as my guarantor on the matter until I was able to pay the client his money back in full,” Ewiwilem said.

“I have been asking Festus Basil to refund my money back to me but he has refused to do so. No one even knows where he stays; no one knows where he operates from.

“But, whenever one calls him, he will pick up, respond and not tell one when he’ll pay. Please help me.”

‘THE ARTFUL DODGER

When FIJ first placed a phone call to Basil for comments on the matter on Tuesday, he promised to refund the money he owed Ewiwilem by the end of the month.

When FIJ subsequently reached out to Ewiwilem to tell her what Basil had said, she said, “That is what he has been saying since June last year.

“He keeps telling everyone that he is owing money that he will pay at the end of the month. But once the month ends, you won’t hear from him again. He has been doing that to everyone since last year.

“He has been giving the same response to everyone he owes money since last year and has never paid a dime in refund.

“He is a fraudster.”

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FIJ called Basil again on Tuesday to be sure he would make good on his promise by refunding Ewiwilem, but this time he would not respond to the call.

Several phone calls were again made to his number on Wednesday, but he did not answer them. He has also not responded to the WhatsApp message sent to him.