A 26-year-old man who holds a diploma in hacking and proration systems has been detained by police in Lilongwe for his role in defrauding gullible business people out of millions of Kwacha via hacking techniques.
Lingadzi Police Public Relations Officer Sergeant Cassim Manda has identified the suspect as Lovemore Chikopa who is also a holder of a Bachelor’s Degree in Information and Communication Technology.
Sergeant Manda reported that Chikopa was taken into custody from a guest house where he had accumulated a bill of over K1 million during his 10-day stay.
He said Chikopa’s hacking schemes targeted high-profile business executives and entrepreneurs, deceiving them into believing he had transferred funds into their accounts through the banking system.
In his most recent attempt, he targeted a businessman in Area 47, in Lilongwe, ordering car batteries worth over 700,000 Kwacha, claiming he would pay through the banking system.
He sent a fake bank alert message of payment using a smart app, but the victim became suspicious after failing to receive a corresponding bank notification.
After being duped, the victim reported the incident to Lingadzi Police Station where the chief Assistant Commissioner of Police, Billy Chimbonga, ordered detectives to hunt down the suspect, leading to his arrest over the weekend.
Chikopa has been paraded before his victims, and police have recovered some of the stolen items, including expensive clothes, which he allegedly stole from different business individuals.
The estimated total loss from Blantyre, Salima, and Lilongwe, where Chikopa wilfully admitted to having committed similar crimes, is believed to be in the region of millions.
Meanwhile, Lingadzi Police Station is urging the public, especially business individuals who use electronic payment methods, to be more vigilant and take online scammers seriously.
Chikopa hails from Bokosi village in the area of Traditional Authority Mpama in Chiradzulu district.
