By; AMOS MATHEW, Kaduna.
Airtel Communications Network Nigeria Ltd, has admitted receipt of letters of petition accusing it of allegedly defrauding a customer of money worth thousands of naira.
The customer Mr. Kayode Oluwole, has written officially to the Airtel office in Kaduna, demanding N20 million as damages for the fraud through his lawyer.
Oluwole who disclosed these in Kaduna at the Nigerian union of Journalists (NUJ), revealed that Airtel perpetrated the fraud on his GTBank account number 0021900308, after blocking his Airtel line.
According to Oluwole, his lawyer Barr. Emmanuel Ekhasemomhe wrote to Airtel, based on his directive, and his plans to take legal action against the company for refusing to refund the money after series of oral complaints to the company staffs.
The victim explained that, between 22nd and 28th July 2016, the sum of N35, 360. 00 was fraudulently removed from his GTbank account by Airtel under the guise of purchasing air times even when his line was still blocked.
The businessman said he noticed with dismay that his Airtel network line used for alert with the GTBank was suddenly blocked by the company for no any reason.
According to him, the fraud was committed at the time his line was blocked, and therefore could not receive any alert when the money was being fraudulently removed.
“My Airtel line was blocked shortly after I received an alert on my mobile phone of N700, 000 deposit I made last on 22nd July, and I did not bother to do welcome back because of my engagement and because I’ve other lines.
“Funny enough, I’ve never been involved in any transactions of buying air times through my bank account for Airtel line or any other lines”, he lamented.
He expressed displeasure that while the Airtel line was blocked, money was being fraudulently removed from his bank account as payment for airtime, ranging from N500-N10, 000, adding, that in less than a week, a total of N35, 136.00 was drawn by Airtel.
Oluwole said that despite several oral complaints to the staff of Airtel at Yakubu Gowon way Kaduna office, the company refused to refund the money, which angered him to contact his lawyer and the media for intervention.
When contacted twice, the Chief Security officer Airtel, Ishaka Lakka, who spoke to Journalists, together with a lady identified as the Manager without a name tag, confirmed the allegations, but stressed that the matter was being handled by their legal department in Abuja office.
“The letter written by Oluwole’s lawyer Barr. Ekhasemomhe, has already been forwarded to Abuja office for attention of the management and the legal officers”, the Airtel staffs hinted, assuring that their office would find lasting solution to the matter reported to them since August this year when the fraud was committed.
A copy of the letter of complaint and reminder addressed to the Manager Kaduna Airtel office by his lawyer Ekhasemomhe, and made available to journalists, stated that even after the welcome back Sim Card was done, no alert was received on the N5,000 recharge card transaction fraudulently remove on the 28 day of July 2016.
Dated 16th August and 6th September 2016, the two letters of complaints written by his lawyer to airtel tagged “Re-Fraud perpetrated on the GTBank account no. 00219*****, belonging to Mr Kayode Oluwole”, gave additional days to Airtel to comply with their demand to pay the N20 million damage or be dragged to court for negligence, fraudulent and unwanted conduct, have been ignored, as no reply was received.
