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The management of Lagos State College of Health Technology (LASCOHET) has uncovered a case of admission racketeering involving a cybercafé operator who allegedly defrauded an applicant of ₦1.5 million.
Provost of the college, Prof. Raheem Akewushola, described the case as “brazen” and warned members of the public against dealing with the suspect, identified as Mr. Arapatile.
According to a statement released on the Lagos State Government’s official X handle, the complainant (name withheld) paid an initial ₦500,000 to the suspect for a purported admission into LASCOHET.
When the promised admission did not materialise, the suspect reportedly assured her that she could still attend classes and later obtain a certificate. Unsatisfied, the victim demanded a refund, but was instead threatened to keep silent.
“During the interrogation of Mr. Arapatile by the Management of LASCOHET, led by the Provost, Professor Akewushola, he confessed to the allegation levelled against him, stating that the admission was not for LASCOHET, but a professional body, CIMB, an association that he claimed to be a Liaison Officer for, but could not give the full name of the acronym.
“Upon preliminary investigation, stamp pads of some institutions were also retrieved from his shop while further investigations are still ongoing,” the statement read.
The Provost stressed that Arapatile is neither a staff member nor an accredited agent of the college, adding that the institution has “zero tolerance” for fraudulent practices.
In a related development, the Acting Vice-Chancellor of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Prof. Carol Chinyelugo Arinze-Umobi, said the school had begun a clampdown on admission racketeering.
This followed disciplinary measures against a staff member accused of fraudulently collecting ₦400,000 from a prospective student’s parent on the promise of securing admission into the Faculty of Medicine.