The owner of Star Shawarma, Ato Mnena Anita, was detained and later charged to court after a misunderstanding with a customer who turned out to be a staff member of the EFCC, sparking outrage on social media.
Mnena recalled being picked up at her business place, Star Shawarma on Kashim Ibrahim Road, Makurdi, the Benue State capital, on May 6, 2020.
According to her, the dispute arose when her accountant raised concerns about a customer, who was an EFCC staff, making a transfer of N1,600 instead of the expected N1,500 for the delivery of Parfait Yorghourt.
Upon realizing the error, Mnena and her team reached out to apologize, but were met with accusations of embarrassing the EFCC staff. She explained that the customer had ordered the product for N1,500, plus a delivery fee of N100, totaling N1,600. However, the company was only expecting an alert of N1,500 and was unaware of the additional N100.
Mnena and Ukan Kurugh
Despite attempting to resolve the issue, Mnena found herself at the receiving end of a dramatic arrest. The customer’s persistence in involving the EFCC ultimately led to Mnena, her manager, and another staff member being taken to the EFCC office, where they were interrogated and detained.
During her detention, Mnena claimed to have been held in appalling conditions, stating, “They seized my phone yesterday, and I had to wear bathroom slippers. I was kept in a cockroach-infested room even with my asthmatic condition.”
Following this traumatic ordeal, Mnena continues to face the aftermath, with the looming prospect of further interrogation for both herself and her manager.
Reflecting on the entire experience, Mnena expressed her dismay, emphasizing, “I feel so very bad, more so, that I have never had any criminal case against me; no not attempted fraud.”