An officer of the Department of State Services (DSS), identified as Salihu Muhammed, has admitted collecting N2.5m from two job seekers after promising to facilitate their recruitment into the secret police, although the applicants say they have yet to receive the promised appointments or recover their money.

One of the applicants, Abdulkadir Liman, accused the officer of pressuring him to obtain a loan and put his only vehicle up for sale to raise money for the recruitment arrangement.

Liman said he was introduced to Muhammed by his friend, Abdullahi Alhassan, who had informed him that the DSS officer claimed his superior had recruitment slots available for interested candidates at N2.5m each.

According to Liman, Alhassan initially paid Muhammed N2m in two instalments of N1.5m and N500,000, with the remaining N500,000 to be paid after securing an appointment.

Liman said he eventually obtained a N500,000 loan and transferred the money to Muhammed while making arrangements to sell his car to raise the outstanding balance.

He alleged that prospective buyers offered significantly lower prices for the vehicle because they suspected he was desperate to sell it.

The applicant further claimed that Muhammed later gave him the contact of a man identified as Sadan, whom he described as a car dealer who could help facilitate the sale.

However, Liman said he subsequently discovered that Sadan was also a DSS employee, raising further concerns about the credibility of the arrangement.

He said he eventually abandoned the plan to sell his car after noticing several irregularities in the recruitment process.

Liman also alleged that Muhammed continued to demand the outstanding payment and arranged for someone claiming to be calling from a DSS office to contact him for questions about his application and personal information.

He expressed suspicion that the call was intended to convince him that the recruitment arrangement was genuine.

Liman said he had independently checked the agency's recruitment requirements online before making payment and discovered that he was above the stipulated maximum age of 30.

He alleged that when he raised the issue through Alhassan, Muhammed assured them that his age would not affect his chances and offered to arrange a fresh National Identification Number registration to alter his date of birth.

According to Liman, the officer demanded an additional N30,000 for the proposed arrangement.

He further claimed that other applicants were invited for an interview at the DSS centre in Victoria Garden City, Lagos, but he and Alhassan were excluded.

When they questioned their exclusion, Liman alleged that Muhammed told them not to worry, claiming he was among the officers conducting the interviews and could award them the required scores without their physical attendance.

The development reportedly heightened his suspicions, prompting him to contact acquaintances within the security agency to verify the recruitment exercise.

Liman said he subsequently learnt that some applicants had already proceeded to a training camp.

He alleged that when he confronted Muhammed with the information, the officer abruptly ended the call and stopped answering his subsequent calls for about a week.

The applicants eventually demanded a refund after concluding that the arrangement had not secured them employment.

Liman said Muhammed asked them in May to allow two months for repayment but had yet to return the money.

DSS OFFICER ADMITS RECEIVING MONEY

When contacted, Muhammed confirmed that he was a DSS officer and acknowledged receiving money in connection with efforts to secure recruitment opportunities for the applicants.

However, he denied defrauding them, insisting that he was acting in an attempt to help them gain employment through his contacts within the agency.

Muhammed explained that Liman was introduced to him by a friend who is a police officer, adding that the applicant was working with the fire service but wanted to move to the DSS.

He said Liman had approached him several times since 2022 to seek assistance with joining the security agency because he was dissatisfied with his existing salary.

According to Muhammed, he subsequently contacted a cousin who was also a DSS officer to help facilitate the recruitment.

He claimed that the arrangement was initially based on the expectation that Liman would obtain his National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate before the agency concluded its compilation of applicants.

Muhammed, however, said the recruitment list had been completed before Liman could provide the required certificate.

He added that he continued pursuing the opportunity because of their family relationship and his desire to help the applicant.

The officer admitted that he collected money from the applicants to pay the DSS colleague he had approached for assistance.

He said the colleague initially requested N2m to facilitate the process and maintained that he had acted in good faith.

Muhammed further claimed that six applicants were involved in the arrangement, with four successfully recruited and having completed their training, while the remaining two, including Liman, were unsuccessful.

He said the four successful candidates completed their training on Saturday, November 8, 2026.

The DSS officer acknowledged that the two unsuccessful applicants had demanded refunds, adding that he had assured them that their money would be returned.

Muhammed claimed he had an understanding with the person who collected the money to use payments from successful applicants to refund those who did not secure appointments.

He attributed the delay to difficulties in recovering the money, saying the families of some successful candidates had asked for more time to sell their agricultural produce before making payments.

He also disclosed that he was seeking a bank loan to refund the applicants, claiming he had requested an official introductory letter from his office to facilitate a N3m loan from Guaranty Trust Bank.

According to him, the letter was awaiting approval from the agency's Deputy Director-General.

Muhammed said he had also put up his land in his village for sale to raise money but had yet to find a buyer despite reducing the asking price.

He claimed that GTBank had indicated its willingness to grant him a loan of up to N5m, pending the submission of the required introductory letter.

The officer said he contacted Liman on Thursday, November 6, to explain the situation but the applicant threatened to report him to the authorities.

Muhammed insisted that he had no intention of absconding with the money and appealed to the applicants to exercise patience, promising to refund the full amount.

He also claimed that another DSS officer from Liman's community had intervened to appeal for more time.

Meanwhile, efforts to obtain the DSS's official position on the allegations were unsuccessful, as the agency's Deputy Director of Public Relations and Strategic Communications, Favour Dozie, neither answered calls nor responded to a message sent to her before the report was filed.