An Ogun State resident reached out to Uwa’s Haven, an Instagram vendor, just days after his 18th birthday in 2023, not anticipating that he would fall victim to a scam.
One year, two months, and twelve days after paying N17,500 to Uwa’s Haven for a pair of jeans, including the delivery fee, the vendor has neither delivered the item nor issued a refund.
Adura discovered Uwa’s Haven Instagram page on May 7 and decided to contact them after seeing a pair of jeans he liked.
He paid N15,000 on May 8 for the jeans and an additional N2,500 for delivery from Lagos to Ogun State. It was later revealed that the OPay account the money was transferred to was under the name Blessing Osaremen Osazuwa, and a Truecaller search of the vendor’s WhatsApp number showed the name ‘Blessing Osaz’.
“My parents contributed part of the money for the jeans. I was preparing for church that Sunday when I first contacted her. I saw the baggy jeans she posted and messaged her but had to stop because I was preparing for church,” Adura explained.
“When I returned from church, I noticed her Instagram page was disabled. I then sent a message to the WhatsApp number on her profile and even sympathized with her about losing her Instagram account, as she said Instagram kept disabling her account.”
After receiving the payment, the vendor promised Adura delivery within two days. However, the delivery never happened, and the vendor later claimed to be sick.
“On May 10, when I sent her a WhatsApp message to ask about the delivery, she sent a hospital picture and a voice note saying she was sick. I felt sorry for her and decided to wait until she was better,” said Adura.
“At some point, when she kept posting on her status despite claiming to be sick, I asked her to return the money if she no longer had the jeans. I questioned, ‘How can you be sick but keep posting?’ I messaged her every time she posted, but she kept assuring me that she would send it once she was okay.
“That’s how ‘when she’s okay’ turned into days, then months, and now more than a year. I have been sending her messages on WhatsApp since then and even this year, but most of my messages are ignored.”
When contacted via WhatsApp on Thursday, the vendor refused to respond to inquiries on the incident.
One minute after being asked if the phone number belonged to Uwa’s Haven, there was a response in the affirmative. When further asked if they still sold clothes on Instagram, the response was, “Nope. My account got disabled. I have tried several times, so for now, [I] am not. Just focusing on my studies.”
However, when asked why both the delivery and refund had been withheld since last year, there was silence.
Despite calling the phone number twice via WhatsApp and it ringing, the vendor refused to answer.
To date, no items have been delivered, and no refund has been issued.
Scammer Details:
- Account Name: Osaremen Osazuwa
- Account Number: 8090883701
- Bank: Access Bank
Source: fij.ng
