Nigerian medical doctor and author Kelvin Alaneme has vowed to sue the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for defamation, insisting that allegations against him are false.
Alaneme, accused of running an immigration scam through his agency CareerEdu, maintained that he is helping Nigerians relocate abroad, stating, “I have never scammed or defrauded anyone in my life, and I never will.”
A BBC ‘Africa Eye’ investigation claims Alaneme charged $13,000 for fake UK care job visas. A secretly recorded BBC report exposed the operations of UK immigration fraudsters, revealing a surge in scams since the UK expanded its visa scheme in 2022 to include care workers. The scheme requires applicants to secure a Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) from a licensed UK employer, a process that has fueled fraudulent activities.
Between July 2022 and December 2024, the UK government revoked over 470 care sector licences, affecting more than 39,000 foreign medical professionals and care workers recruited since 2020.
The BBC linked Alaneme to fraudulent relocation services, alleging that he provided job placements that did not exist.
In an undercover recording, Alaneme, believing he was speaking with a business partner in the UK care sector, attempted to recruit her, saying, “Just get me care homes. I can make you a millionaire.”
He explained he would pay £2,000 ($2,600) for each care home vacancy she secured, plus a £500 ($650) commission. These positions were allegedly sold to Nigerian applicants.
The BBC also found that Efficiency for Care, a company tied to the scam, issued 1,234 CoS between March 2022 and May 2023 despite employing only 16 people in 2022 and 152 in 2023.
The UK government revoked its sponsorship licence in July 2023, preventing it from hiring foreign workers.
In another secretly filmed meeting, Alaneme detailed how migrants could obtain CoS for non-existent jobs, with fake payroll records disguising the fraud.
One alleged victim, Praise, claimed he paid Alaneme over £10,000 ($13,000) for a job with Efficiency for Care in Clacton-on-Sea, only to discover upon arrival that the job did not exist.
Denying the allegations, Alaneme emphasised that CareerEdu does not employ care workers but only connects candidates with legitimate recruiters.
“We are not Care Job employers in the UK. We have always made this clear. Our job is to link qualified employees to legitimate and licensed employers and recruiters who do provide Certificate of Sponsorship,” he said, adding that some recruiters charge additional costs for training, transport, and accommodation.
“In the event that these clients are not successful, they do get a full refund of these extra costs, no questions asked.”
When challenged online to sue the BBC if his business was legitimate, Alaneme responded, “We’ll do that.”
The Nigerian doctor further accused the BBC of bias, saying, “If the BBC really wanted to do a ‘real story,’ there are many individuals exploiting people, issuing fake CoS, and outrightly scamming people… We have done none of this, yet they insist on putting out this one-sided falsehood. I believe that the truth will win and posterity will vindicate the just.”
