At a press conference held on March 14, 2025, in Lagos, Nigeria, the Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, officially announced the arrest of a man named Ikoro Mang Ifendu in Aba, Abia State, for impersonating a NAFDAC official and defrauding foreign companies of over USD 1.4 million using forged NAFDAC documents.
Details of the Fraud Case
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According to the official NAFDAC press release, Ikoro Mang Ifendu posed as a NAFDAC officer to deceive and extort foreign firms through falsified product registration and certification schemes.
The scam was first uncovered by Thani Almaeeni Trading Group (based in Abu Dhabi, UAE) when the company applied for product registration for dried seafood and discovered that its supposed registration certificate — NAFDAC No. A2-7059 — had never been issued by NAFDAC.
“Thani Almaeeni Trading Group and several other foreign companies have become victims of this elaborate scam,” the statement said.
The suspect and his accomplices allegedly used fake NAFDAC certificates to obtain large payments from overseas firms by falsely promising official approvals.
How the Scam Operated
The NAFDAC investigation revealed that the fraud network operated in three phases, involving a buyer, a bank, and a fake lawyer:
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The “buyer” contacted foreign exporters to import goods into Nigeria.
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The buyer then introduced the exporters to certain banks in Nigeria, claiming those banks would handle payment.
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The banks reportedly told exporters that their products could not be imported without NAFDAC approval, thereby creating the pretext for the scam.
At this point, a fake lawyer entered the scheme, offering to “assist with NAFDAC certification” for a fee. The lawyer collected money in several stages and issued forged receipts and counterfeit certificates to the companies.
Financial Trail and Investigation Findings
The investigation found that the fraud ring operated 15 foreign currency accounts and 5 local currency accounts across 7 Nigerian banks. Some accounts were deleted by the suspect to obscure money trails.
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Estimated inflows from victims to Nigerian foreign currency accounts: over USD 950,000.
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Estimated inflows to external accounts in Cotonou, Benin Republic: about USD 450,000.
Just before the press conference, investigators confirmed an additional USD 75,000 transfer had been received into one of the scam accounts.
Data extracted from the suspect’s phone revealed more foreign victims, including:
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Japan Long Tie Co., Ltd. (China)
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BEYOND Korea (USA)
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Aquaforest SP (Poland)
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Tianyan Filter Cloth Co., Ltd. (Shanghai, China)
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China-Canada Siam Co., Ltd. (China)
Official Warning from NAFDAC
NAFDAC urged all foreign companies to avoid doing business with any entity claiming to be a “consultant” or “registration agent” acting on behalf of NAFDAC.
The agency emphasized that all legitimate product registrations and verifications should be conducted only through the official NAFDAC online system:
👉 https://registration.nafdac.gov.ng/