The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has written Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. to furnish it with details on credit cards used by musician, Azeez Fashola, popularly known as Naira Marley.
The commission said the cards recovered from the artiste during his arrest were used for alleged identity theft and credit card fraud. According to court documents obtained by Punch, the EFCC’s letters to Visa and Mastercard – titled, ‘Investigation Activities’ – were dated May 13, 2019, three days after it arrested Naira Marley.
The letters were signed by the Zonal Head, EFCC, Lagos, Dein Whyte. “The commission is investigating a case of identity theft and electronic cards-related fraud in which the listed card information were recovered during investigation,” EFCC’s letter to Visa and Mastercard partly read.
In the letter to Visa, the commission asked the company to provide information about the last five transactions on each of three Visa cards recovered from Naira Marley. The first card with number 4921819410257431 was issued by Lloyds Bank Plc and bears the name Timea Fedorne Tatar. The second card with number 4539782440624281 was issued by Barclays Bank Plc and bears the name Nicole Louise Maylon, while the third card with number 4757147207869807 was issued by Santander UK Plc and bears the name Sharon Broad.
Likewise, in the EFCC’s letter to Mastercard, the commission asked the company to furnish it with information about the last five transactions on a Mastercard card recovered from the musician. The card with number 5354631405139323 was issued by Prepay Technologies Ltd and bears the name Linh H. Mendez Rojas.
Naira Marley was arrested on May 10 at 9 Gbangbala Street, Ikate, Lekki, Lagos, together with Omomniyi Temidayo (aka Zlatan Ibile) and three others for alleged advance fee fraud. Following his arrest, the anti-graft agency filed an 11-count against Naira Marley. The charges with suit number FHC/L/178C/19 were filed before a Lagos State High Court.
The artiste was later arraigned before Justice Nicholas Oweibo of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, on May 20, 2019. Following his arraignment, Justice Oweibo ordered that Naira Marley be remanded in the prison custody until May 30 to take the bail application filed by the defendant’s counsel, Taiwo Oreagba.