The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ola Olukoyode has lamented the existence of criminal enterprises which he labelled ‘419 Training Schools’ where Primary School pupils are recruited and trained for illicit activities.
Olukoyode made the revelation on while addressing journalists on Thursday in Abuja, on the steps being taken by the commission to eradicate corruption in Nigeria.
According to him, in the course of their campaign to combat corruption nationwide, the commission unearthed the existence of such facilities where primary school kids are recruited and trained to become cyber criminals, with the consent of their parents, who sign an undertaking for the minors.
“We have what we call ‘419 Training Schools’ where they harvest our children from primary schools. When they leave their regular studies at 2 O’clock, they end up in some of these 419 training schools. They start indoctrinating them, these are facts.
“They first of all, ask them, even their parents to sign an undertaking. They get indoctrinated into cybercrime as young as they are, with their parents’ consent. By the time they enter Secondary School “Oh!”
“This practice has been ongoing for over a decade unknown to the authorities or that they chose to ignore it.
“That’s why you see them in 100, 200 level hacking and you think they just started that way. “No!” They started ten to fifteen years earlier but we didn’t take cognizance of that”
