A 38-year-old woman Funmilayo Oyelaja on Monday admitted diverting N38 million that National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) paid by the federal government to a Health Management Organisation (HMO) Clearline for onward distribution to some hospitals.
Oyelaja who worked in the company for 10 years, said she was moved to accounts unit in 2014 and that it was from that time she got involved in the fraud.
She claimed she diverted more money but personally received N38million which she transferred to her account, those of her son and sisters instead of the real hospitals.
It was gathered that the suspect fled the country to Ghana in 2017 immediately the alleged fraud was discovered but eventually turned herself in at the weekend following the arrest of her live-in lover Tunde Ogunseye, who returned to the country to bury his late mother.
According to the woman, she stole the money with the consent of two of her bosses, who she claimed notified her partner that the deal had been exposed and that they should live Nigeria immediately.
“I was handling accounts. I worked with Clearline for 10 years. It was while I was working that I diverted NHIS money paid to Clearline. My bosses knew about it. It is what they do there. The company steals money from NHIS and my boss is aware of it.
“We are supposed to pay hospitals and return those of hospitals we cannot trace or identify. But instead of refunding them, Clearline we move them to another account to make it look like the money has been paid.
“I was on leave when someone called my husband that we should leave the country immediately because the company was aware we took money. They wanted us to run away so that we would not mention the names of others involved.
“I do not know the exact person that called but I am sure it is from the company. The company said I stole N60m but I only took N38million and the company owed more than N60million. I started to work with account in 2014.
“I used my share of the money to buy a house and other properties which the company has seized. They also took the remaining money. They have taken everything. The company is accusing only me but I am not the only one involved.
“I have been in Ghana since 2017. My husband was the one who helped us to flee the country. I had to come back to surrender when they arrested him,” she said.
Ogunseye confirmed it was one of his lover’s bosses who called and told him to take her out of the country immediately. He said they already had valid visas before the lid was blown, adding that his offence was assisting his woman to flee the country.
He said they have managed to stay away since then until his mother died last week and he had to come home for the burial at Ifako, Ogba where he was arrested.
Commending the police for arresting the woman, General Manager Clearlines Mrs. Ijeoma Ayam said they would ensure others she mentioned as her accomplices were arrested and investigated.
She however dismissed her claims that the company was involved in diverting NHIS funds describing it as “the story of a drowning man.”
She said: “The truth of the matter is that for almost two years now, she has been on the run and were just caught over the weekend. So, now that she is saying that she is not the only one, the others are still there and would be apprehended and questioned.
“She can claim anything. That’s how a dying man operate. A drowning man would clutch at anything but the truth of the matter is that the NHIS has all the information of remittances that are made every year to them for hospitals that have closed down or hospitals that cannot be located.
“The money is remitted back to the NHIS so the records are there. What they are involved in is pure fraud. It has nothing to do with money remittance or no remittance. She worked in the account department and so for everyone they all have their own different portfolios.
“This fraud was discovered when she was on leave. What she used to do was to put the names of the hospital but with her account number or that of her son or relative. In a situation where you are dealing with over 2,000 hospitals, your major concern is to ensure all the names are listed and then you approve the amount stated.
“Each time the hospitals called while she was around, she would tell them the company was working on paying them. If a particular company disturbed her so much, she would move money from another and pay them to avoid raiding suspicious.
“So, when another person handled her account and a hospital called to raise issue, the books were checked and we discovered that the company has been paid. When we asked them to send their account number, we realised it was different from the number on the approved list.”
Parading the suspects yesterday, Police Commissioner Zubairu Muazu said investigation was ongoing and they would be prosecuted at the end.