Police arrest two fake journalists

Started by emezico, Jun 20, 2011, 03:33 PM

emezico

The Rivers State Police Command arrested two suspected fake journalists in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

The fake journalists, who were identified as Mr. Prince Gbasam and Tony Nzekwe, were said to have been apprehended after they had extorted the sum of N25,000 from an elderly man that visited the state for the 27th convocation ceremony of the University of Port Harcourt.

Presenting themselves as foreign journalists from South Africa, the arrested men had told their victim that the N25,000 given to them would not be enough for them to travel back to their country.

Armed with three identification cards of three different media organisations, Gbasam and Nzekwe entered the Presidential Lounge of the Rivers State Government House.

Newsmen gathered that an aide to the elderly man, Miss Ann Izi, suspecting the two young men, asked to see their camera and verify the interview with her principal.

To her amazement, the video camera did not even have tape nor battery.

Gbasam, One of the fake journalists, claimed that he was an employee of The Wish Newspaper, The Informant Magazine and The Informant Magazine, and the identification cards of all the media were found on him.

"The Old GRA Police Station was alerted and the officers immediately arrived and arrested one of the suspects, who had in his possession a microphone, tape recorder and three separate identity cards belonging to different media houses while his partner escaped," a top official in Rivers Government House said.


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