By Habeeb Ibrahim and Ghazali Ibrahim 
The Bayelsa State Police Command has arrested a woman, Ogechi Okechukwu, and a medical doctor from the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Yenagoa, for allegedly defrauding unsuspecting individuals through a fake surgery fundraising scheme on social media.
According to police reports, Okechukwu and the doctor conspired to deceive people on Facebook by falsely claiming she needed financial assistance for a critical surgical procedure. To make the appeal appear genuine, the doctor allegedly provided fake medical reports, drug prescriptions, and staged medical procedures, including a fake intravenous drip, a falsified blood transfusion, and fabricated scan results.
A Facebook influencer, Iwaoma Susan Joseph, was among those misled by the fraudulent appeal. She unknowingly helped raise ₦800,000 from kindhearted donors, believing the request was legitimate. However, suspicions arose when Okechukwu continued to demand more money.
On the scheduled day of the surgery, a member of the Facebook community volunteered to accompany her to FMC Yenagoa, only to find that Okechukwu had vanished from the hospital. Further investigations revealed that her name was not recorded in the hospital’s documentation, prompting authorities to dig deeper.
The scheme was fully uncovered after police discovered incriminating evidence of conversations between Okechukwu and the doctor on her mobile phone. The messages exposed how they orchestrated the elaborate scam, with the doctor providing her a hospital bed, setting up fake medical apparatus, and issuing falsified prescriptions and reports.
Following their arrest, both suspects were placed in police custody as investigations continue. The Bayelsa State Police Command has warned the public to be cautious when donating to online medical appeals and verify claims before offering financial assistance.
Meanwhile, members of the Facebook community who donated to Okechukwu’s fraudulent cause have expressed outrage, demanding full accountability and the recovery of their funds.
