In a candid conversation with editors at the EFCC Headquarters in Abuja, Chairman Ola Olukoyede disclosed a startling incident involving a 17-year-old internet fraudster, commonly known as a Yahoo boy, who hacked into his bank account while being questioned at his office in Lagos.
Olukoyede recounted the sequence of events, stating, “I brought into my Lagos office a seventeen-year-old boy who is studying History and Anthropology… He asked for my number, I gave him my number and through my number, he got my BVN.”
The teenager, proficient in cyber exploits, managed to retrieve Olukoyede’s account details without any prompting.
Despite Olukoyede’s warning against illicit activities, the teenager brazenly asserted his capability to transfer 10 million naira from Olukoyede’s account to his own. Olukoyede promptly cautioned him against attempting such a transaction within the confines of his office.
Explaining the teenager’s involvement in cybercrime, Olukoyede revealed, “He is into fraud because his parents, who are both farmers, were unable to go to the farm due to security concerns… He is the one feeding his parents and responsible for the payment of tuition for his younger ones.”
Despite his illegal actions, Olukoyede couldn’t help but recognize the teenager’s resourcefulness, likening him to a young Bill Gates.