Nigerian detained in Turkey after promising to turn paper into dollars

ISTANBUL

A Nigerian citizen has been detained by Turkish police after he attempted to fraud a number of hotel owners by claiming that he could turn blank paper into U.S. dollars.

The suspect, identified as Samsoon Bello, claimed that he has a chemical solution that can turn paper into dollars, promising to provide free cash to a number of hotel owners in Istanbul in exchange for an advance fee.

Bello was actually providing fake dollars, local media reported on Aug. 10.

Following a tip, police officers nabbed Bello in Istanbul’s touristic Beyoğlu district.

Bello was conditionally released by court, pending trial.