The WhatsApp number of the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Umo Eno, has been hacked by fraudsters, leading to an attempt to defraud several of his contacts.
The incident came to light on Tuesday when some individuals on the governor’s contact list received messages from his WhatsApp number, requesting that money be sent to a specified account with a promise of a refund later.
In a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to the governor, Ekerete Udoh, it was revealed that the governor’s WhatsApp number had been “cloned” by criminal elements who were attempting to defraud unsuspecting individuals.
The CPS emphasized that the messages were not from Governor Eno and urged the public to disregard any such requests.
He also assured that law enforcement agencies have been alerted and are actively investigating the situation to apprehend those responsible.
The statement reads, “Our attention has been drawn to carefully orchestrated fraudulent posts on some social media platforms, where some criminal elements have cloned the WhatsApp number of His Excellency, the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, with an intent to defraud unsuspecting members of the public.
“We hereby warn that any message appearing to solicit funds by these imposters should be totally discountenanced by the general public as they do not emanate from the Governor.
“The law enforcement agents have been duly alerted and are on the trail of the perpetrators of this ignoble act.”
In July, one of the phone numbers of Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun, was also hacked.
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