AUCHI, EDO STATE – July 25, 2025 – A wave of shock and anger has swept through Auchi, Edo State, after a man, posing as an agent for a government initiative, disappeared with an estimated ₦20 million collected from approximately 1,000 residents in a fraudulent rice sales scheme this week.
The architect of the scam reportedly opened a foodstuff shop in the bustling town, launching a ‘promo’ that caught the public’s attention: a 50kg bag of rice, currently valued at over ₦60,000, was being sold for a mere ₦20,000. To lend credibility to the unbelievable offer, the man and his team claimed it was a “Federal Government subsidized palliative empowerment initiative,” complete with professionally printed banners, fliers, and a team of supposed ‘government’ workers.
The scheme initially sold a limited number of rice bags, creating a frenzy and building trust. Witnesses report that the first hundred bags were sold quickly, causing demand to skyrocket. Between Monday and Wednesday, as crowds grew larger, the operator announced he had run out of stock. He then urged hopeful buyers, including market traders looking to buy in bulk, to pre-pay ₦20,000 in cash to secure their bags from a new shipment allegedly arriving from “customs” the next morning.
By Thursday morning, the reality of the scam set in. The man and his entire team had vanished. The shop was stripped bare, their phone numbers were unreachable, and the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) registration number displayed on their promotional materials was found to be non-existent.
In a fit of rage, a crowd of furious victims descended on the empty shop on Thursday, destroying what little was left of the structure.
“He looked so official, with his team in matching vests,” one victim, who asked to remain anonymous, recounted. “They even sold rice and other things like oil and tomatoes to people in front of us. We all thought we were lucky, especially the traders who paid for 50 bags each, hoping to resell. We were all fooled.”
Investigations by locals have since revealed a crucial detail of the deception: the initial customers who successfully purchased the cheap rice were allegedly accomplices, part of the elaborate plot to create a facade of legitimacy and lure in a larger number of unsuspecting victims.
Local authorities have reportedly been notified, but the perpetrator’s insistence on cash-only transactions has made tracing the funds a significant challenge. The incident serves as a stark reminder for citizens to be wary of deals that seem “too good to be true” and to verify the legitimacy of any government-proclaimed initiatives through official channels.
