IN SHORT: Africa Check has debunked several Facebook accounts trying to scam people. What we found here are shady accounts using pictures of ailing individuals to scam Nigerians on Facebook.
"A word from his DAD. I am writing this in tears, & i request only few seconds of your precious time to pray for my Son ( Emmanuel) & Also help him financially please," reads a post by a user in a public Facebook group.
The post, dated 9 June 2023, asks members in the group DIVINE MERCY 3 O'CLOCK DAILY PRAYER (HOUR OF MERCY) to send money to an Access Bank account to treat an injured little boy.
It includes a photo of what appears to be an injured boy who allegedly needs treatment that costs N980,000. Similar posts can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
The post has over 700 comments, with some praying for the boy's speedy recovery.
But is the post by the Facebook account real? We checked.
Shady Facebook accounts
The Facebook account that made the post, Samuel Omigiri Paul, made a similar post in the same group on 5 June 2023.
The account's activity has been inconsistent since it made its first post in 2014, with less than six posts on its personal timeline since then.
Another user made a similar post in another group. However, he used a picture of an ailing toddler different from the one used here.
Same bank account holder
A pattern found in posts of the ailing boy and similar content is that there is an Access Bank account number attached to them. We found several posts with the same format in different groups using the same bank account.
Africa Check found that this particular bank account belonged to one Johnson Phillip.
In 2021, we also found a similar post with a different account number and picture of an ailing individual, but the accounts are under the same name.
These kinds of Facebook accounts are often used to play on users' emotions with the aim of scamming them.
To help protect yourself against online scams, read our guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.
