Ojuede Ojuejo, a Lagos-based banker, was surfing the internet last November when he found a mouth-watering deal from Declutter Residence on Instagram, but he didn’t know the page set out to defraud him.

The banker told FIJ that he reached out to the page on November 29 to inquire about the price of the bed and washing machine that caught his fancy.

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Being a page that acts as a middleman for the sale of properties of those relocating abroad, Happiness Efe, the admin of the page, told the banker that the items he liked cost N185,000 and that he would get the product within 48 hours after payment.

Trusting the page because it seemed credible in appearance, the banker transferred the complete sum and then requested the address of the seller, as discussed before he sent the money, but Happiness Efe failed to keep his word.

“After I sent the money to the First Bank account he gave me, I was hoping that he would send me the address and phone number of the seller. He asked for a five-minute time frame, but 30 minutes later, he refused to take my calls or respond to my messages,” the banker told FIJ.

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“I then called him and he ended it. He’s remained like this ever since. I had to flag the transaction as fraudulent, but it has yet to yield any meaningful outcome.

“A police friend even spoke to him about the matter, but he denied knowing who I am and claimed he had never transacted with me. The last time we spoke, he said he thought he had sent the address of the seller, and to date, I have heard no word from him.”

When FIJ called Happiness Efe for comments, he spoke casually for almost a minute and then ended the call after the reporter identified himself. On the second dial, his phone did not connect because it was switched off. Minutes later, his page was deleted on Instagram.