Rosemary Ogbu (pseudonym), a Nigerian living in Indianapolis, United States, has accused Jeffery Osagie, a Nigerian marketer in the US, of refusing to pay the $3,200 he promised for her services in a cookware sales scheme.
Ogbu told FIJ Osagie assured her she would earn $2,500 for every 10 dinner shows she successfully booked and earn a 10 per cent commission on any item she sold. However, despite meeting the conditions for the promised monetary reward, Osagie has refused to pay her.
She said she was convinced by Osagie’s scheme after he explained it in her house on August 16. This was after a friend had introduced him as an agent with a cookware company.
Ogbu explained that during the sales pitch, Osagie said the business was not just about purchasing cookware but also an opportunity to earn money through referrals and bookings.
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Ogbu said Osagie promised a 10 per cent commission on every product purchased by referrals and a $2,500 cash prize for every ten dinner demonstrations booked. He provided her with a booking sheet and detailed instructions on how to recruit families for these demonstrations, emphasising that both husband and wife needed to be present during the sessions.
A leaflet given to Ogbu by Jeff Osagie
“He explained that booking means we’d talk to people about the products and that he was interested in doing a food demonstration in their homes. If they comply, he’d do the food and product display. He said for every 10 bookings I secured, regardless of whether or not the people bought any product, I would get a $2,500 cash prize,” Ogbu told FIJ.
Ogbu said she worked relentlessly to get 10 families to allow Osagie into their homes for the dinner bookings, but he failed to honour his promise after the tenth demonstration. She said he repeatedly made promises but failed to fulfil them whenever she asked for her money.
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“I got one person to buy a product, but he has not paid me to date. I was to earn $700, but he hasn’t paid me. He made us think we were buying pots and registering into a chain business. At the end of the day, he ran away with the money, and we were not the only ones,” Ogbu said.
A text message between the source and Osagie
Ogbu also said she had texted Osagie on several occasions to request her money, but he repeatedly assured her he would pay up. He has not done so since November.
Out of curiosity, Ogbu said, she emailed Royal Prestige, the company whose products Osagie was selling but they said they knew nothing about Osagie and that what transpired was between herself and Osagie.
“They said their company does not have that kind of arrangement to pay customers or put them on a payroll. That was the distributor’s idea,” she said.
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However, when FIJ checked the internet for Royal Prestige, multiple results showed that many people associate their name with fraud. This dates back to a 2005 post.
FIJ found that between October and December 2024, many Consumer Affairs commenters who purchased a product of Royal Prestige accused them of being unfaithful with their warranty policy. Some others mentioned that “Jeff” or “Osagie”, who is the same person, scammed them.
When FIJ called Osagie for comments on WhatsApp, he did not take his calls. After more than 24 hours, he had not responded to a follow-up text message.
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