Three individuals suspected of being involved in National Identity Number (NIN) racketeering were apprehended by the Rivers State Police Command in Port Harcourt.
The suspects were arrested at the entrance of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) along Aba Road in the state capital following complaints about their activities.
They had posed as NIN agents but had ulterior motives. Some of the roadside agents claimed that they were selling NIN registration forms due to a lack of employment. The suspects were arrested, and they pleaded with the police to allow them to continue operating.
He stated, “You know this is a federal government office and people come here to either obtain a NIN or verify theirs and other things.
“You see this group of young men that hang around here constituting nuisance and claiming to be agents when nobody sent them to do what they are doing.
“They corner the people who come to our office and promise to assist them with whatever they want. Sometimes they even tell them that they are the genuine staff of NIMC and collect money from them.”
Continuing, he said, “We have chased them and asked them not to hang around our gate, but they always come back. There was a time when the police came and arrested some of them. After some days they were back.”
Efforts to reach the spokesperson of the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, proved abortive as her mobile was not connected.
Also, she had yet to reply to a text message sent to her as of the time of filing this report on Thursday afternoon.
