The National Identity Management Commission has said it has uncovered a syndicate of individuals posing as employees of the commission and issuing fake national identity numbers to unsuspecting Nigerians.
It said some suspects had been arrested and were undergoing prosecution with relevant security agencies.
The NIMC Director General, Abisoye Coker-Odusote, disclosed this at a press briefing in Abuja, adding that the commission got wind of the issue after a customer complained that she had paid N120,000 to modify her birth certificate.
Odusote at the briefing also announced that over 107.34 million Nigerians had been enrolled into the NIN database as of May 2024 from the 104 million recorded in December 2023.
The NIN, a unique identifier assigned to each citizen, has gained prominence in recent years as the cornerstone of various government initiatives aimed at enhancing security, governance, and service delivery.
Detailing the mode of operation for the syndicate, the director-general explained that the individuals masqueraded as business vendors and operators of cyber cafes, crafting links for unsuspecting individuals, developing software, and fabricating fake NINs.
She said a further clampdown led to the discovery of a group of individuals around its annex office.
The NIMC boss, however, declined to disclose details on the number of persons being interrogated but assured that as soon as the investigation was concluded, they would be prosecuted for cybercrimes.
Coke-Odusote said efforts had reached the advanced stage for ministries, departments, and agencies of government to harmonise their identity database with the NIMC for the country to have a central identity database.