Police Arraign Two Men for Alleged Online Scheme to Tarnish Moniepoint’s Image

The Nigeria Police have filed criminal charges against two men, Adebayo Aliu and Fatuntele Lukmon Tunde, accusing them of conspiring to damage the reputation of Moniepoint Microfinance Bank through a fraudulent online scheme.

The defendants were scheduled to appear before Justice Ofili Ajumogobia of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, on a seven-count charge but were absent. The matter has since been adjourned to April 27, 2026.

In a charge sheet numbered FHC/ABJ/CR/122/2026, police legal representative Anthony A. Egwu, Esq., alleged that the duo conspired to tarnish the bank’s image by promising social media users N500,000 to post fictitious scandalous experiences about Moniepoint. The alleged scheme was designed to generate online engagement and grow the perpetrators’ social media following.

The charge sheet partly reads: “That you Adebayo Aliu… and Fatuntele Lukmon Tunde… sometime in January 2026 in Nigeria… conspired, aided, and abetted each other to bully, threaten, or harass the corporate image of Moniepoint Micro Finance Bank by creating a fraudulent platform to solicit online tumultuous engagement of the public by promising a sum of N500,000 to unsuspecting victims who would comment with the phrase ‘Moniepoint scandal’ and share any imaginary scandalous experience regarding Moniepoint MFB.”

The police further accused the two men of fraudulently impersonating popular social media influencer Brain Jotter to deceive internet users into participating in the alleged scheme.

According to the charge sheet, the actions of the defendants are contrary to Section 27(2)(b) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act 2015 (as amended) 2024 and punishable under Section 24(1)(b) of the same Act. The police stated that the scheme has caused the financial institution considerable damage.

However, in his reaction to the allegations, Adebayo Aliu denied any involvement in a fraudulent scheme. He maintained that he was merely expressing his frustrations as a customer of the bank over service delivery issues.

“My intention was to ask a question as a customer. I did not expect that raising that concern would lead to something else,” Aliu said. “I believe customers should be able to ask questions about issues affecting their money.”

The case is set to resume at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on April 27, 2026.