Lagos scammer earns 32 times country’s minimum wage impersonating traffic agency official

Cool as cucumber, Femi Adegbemi, 56 years old, walks into Lagos impound lot, hassles hapless motorists and makes away with an average, N250, 000 (USD 178) weekly, eight times more than the monthly minimum national wage.

By the end of the month, it all adds up to a cool N1 million; about 32 times the country’s minimum wage for a civil servant.

Adegbemi is not an operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA).

He however impersonates them, and for a long time, obtain money by false pretense from interstate motorists who have no time to check out his credentials.

But luck ran out on him on Tuesday when he was caught after collecting N140,000 from  owners of vehicles impounded for traffic infractions by the Agency.

The Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA Mr. Adebayo Taofiq confirmed that the suspect was apprehended by the monitoring and surveillance team of the Agency at Oshodi.

The suspect was apprehended after the Agency received complaints of extortions from owners of inter-state commercial buses impounded and ticketed for traffic infractions around Moshalasi by Alakia area of Surulere.

So far, investigations conducted revealed that the arrested Adegbemi has been collecting huge amount of money from innocent owners of vehicles impounded by Lastma Officials during enforcement operations.

“The arrested suspect collected N140,000 from owners/drivers by promising to help them get their impounded vehicles released from the custody of Agency.”

“It is disheartening getting complaints from road users particularly owners of impounded vehicles on activities of these unscrupulous elements impersonating and extorting money from different owners of impounded vehicles thereby tarnishing the good image of the Agency before the public,” explained Taofiq.

The General Manager of LASTMA Mr. Bakare-Oki Olalekan warned the general public to be wary of these unscrupulous elements stating that the Agency operates a cashless policy as any violators apprehended are charged to Court via a ‘Referral Notice’ issued to them.

He confirmed that more surveillance/monitoring personnel have been strategically deployed to hunt for these unscrupulous elements duping innocent motoring public across the State.

The arrested suspect confessed to have collected N140,000 from owners of the impounded inter-state commercial vehicles.

He further confessed to be to be living at No. 9, Anifowose Street, Somolu and makes an average of N250,000 on weekly basis from the illegal deals with his other colleagues.

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