The Plateau State Police Command has taken a young man into custody for allegedly swindling a Point of Sale (PoS) attendant out of ₦1,550,000 at the Terminus market.
According to a Tuesday statement from Police Public Relations Officer SP Alfred Alabo, the suspect, identified as Jonathan Sambo Bitrus, a 20-year-old man from Bauchi State, was caught following a report by the victim, Miss Josephine Morolayo.
The incident began when Bitrus approached the shop under the guise of checking his account balance before requesting a large withdrawal of ₦1,950,000.
The fraud occurred when the attendant handed Bitrus the PoS terminal to enter his PIN. Instead of completing a legitimate transaction, the suspect navigated through the device’s history to find a previous successful receipt for the same amount.
After canceling his own transaction on an empty account, he presented the old receipt as proof of payment. Deceived by the paperwork, the salesgirl handed over ₦1,550,000 in cash, asking him to wait for the remaining ₦400,000 until her manager returned. By the time the discrepancy was discovered upon the manager’s arrival, the suspect had already fled the scene.
During police questioning, Bitrus admitted to the scheme and revealed that he used the stolen funds to purchase high-end electronics, specifically an iPhone 13 Pro, along with various clothing items.
While the suspect remains in custody awaiting formal charges in court, the Police Command has issued a public advisory.
Authorities are urging business owners and citizens to exercise extreme caution during digital financial exchanges and to report any suspicious behavior to the nearest security agency to help curb the rise of financial crimes.
