Missing items spark face-off between customer, Abuja mall

A customer, Mr Azubuike Ishiekwene, is at loggerheads with the management of a mall, Dunes Centre, located in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, over some personal belongings that went missing while he was shopping in the mall on Sunday.

Speaking in an interview with our correspondent on Wednesday, Ishiekwene noted that he had gone to the mall to purchase some items on Sunday and made payment using his Automated Teller Machine card.

He said that upon leaving the mall and getting home, he realised that he had forgotten his wallet containing personal items, including his driving licence, bank cards, and some money at the cash-out point.

Ishiekwene noted that he returned to the mall and reported the issue to a staff member, who said he would check the place where the missing items were kept.

He said that after some minutes, the worker returned and told him that the wallet was not in the missing-items storage, and promised to conduct a CCTV review and get back to him.

Ishiekwene said that the following day, he called the staff member to request the outcome of the CCTV review but was informed that the facility was faulty and could not be reviewed.

Ishiekwene continued, “He said that the main CCTV monitor room is not open on Sunday but that they would review it on Monday and let me know the outcome. I left with a heavy heart.

“On Monday, I was the one who called him to ask about the report concerning my items. He said that the CCTV camera had broken down and that the transaction was not recorded, and the CCTV camera had not worked for one month. I was upset because what he was telling me was completely different from what he had said earlier.”

He expressed displeasure at the attitude of the mall in resolving the matter, noting that such a mall should have a duty of care to its customers.

Ishiekwene added that he reported the matter to the police to safeguard his identity from being used to perpetrate criminal activities due to the nature of the missing items.

When contacted on Wednesday, a representative of the mall, Rami Shaaban, directed our correspondent to the organisation’s lawyer, Innocent Lagi, for an official response.

When our correspondent reached out to Lagi, he disclosed that the organisation was not in a position to search for a customer’s missing item.

He noted that the customer should report the matter to the police if he was certain of his claims, and he threatened to sue our correspondent should the report be published.

Lagi said in part, “It is not your business. When somebody loses their wallet, they go to the police. You can’t interrogate on the basis of a complaint that looks criminal in nature.”

He requested that our correspondent write formally to him, and when the channel of official communication was requested, Lagi declined to comment.

Meanwhile, efforts to get the reaction of the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Josephine Adeh, proved abortive as she had yet to respond to an enquiry message on the matter sent to her on Wednesday as of the time of filing this report.