The Martins Vincent Otse Initiative, a non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to addressing Nigeria’s educational challenges, has fallen victim to a brazen cyber attack. Hackers have stolen a staggering N180 million from the organization’s official account, leaving its founder, VeryDarkMan (VDM), reeling.
In an Instagram post on Friday, VDM shared the shocking news, revealing his efforts with law enforcement to recover the stolen funds.
“I’m at the airport. I’ll be honest: I have not been myself over the past few days,” he began. “I am here with an officer, and we are on our way to Jos. Somebody hacked into the NGO website, and I don’t know how they did it, but 180 million is missing. Thankfully, we’ve tracked the person and are heading to Jos. They’ve already arrested one suspect, so I’m sharing this now.”
The Martins Vincent Otse Initiative was launched on October 14 and gained immediate traction, raising over N33 million in its first 24 hours. Music mogul Don Jazzy contributed N100 million, pushing the total funds raised to over N200 million. However, the recent hacking incident has dealt a significant blow to the organization’s progress.
VDM revealed that to mitigate further breaches, he temporarily disabled the NGO’s mobile app.
“I even had to shut down the app so people wouldn’t notice what’s happening,” he explained. “The account currently holds N20 million, but N160 million has been diverted to another account. We are heading there now to see how I can recover the money. I just wanted to update you all.”
Despite the distress, VDM expressed optimism about recovering the stolen funds, though logistical challenges added to his frustration.
“I couldn’t get a regular ticket because flights were full, so I had to book business class,” he added.
The Martins Vincent Otse Initiative was created with the ambitious goal of addressing Nigeria’s educational challenges, particularly in underfunded and underserved areas.
During its launch, VDM highlighted issues such as a lack of motivated, modern teachers and the need for innovative tools like projectors to make education more engaging.
While the initiative has drawn praise for its vision, it has also faced skepticism, with concerns about potential government interference and the sustainability of its goals.
“This has been one of the most difficult experiences of my life, but I hope to get the money back,” he said.
