Lady Who Reported Phone Vendor to Police after Buying iPhone 12 Pro Max Speaks: "I Dodged Bullet"
- A young Nigerian lady has shared her frustrating experience on TikTok while trying to purchase her first iPhone
- In a video, she recounted her experience with a particular vendor whom she eventually had to report to a police station
- Following the incident, she expressed excitement that she was able to purchase a better phone from another vendor
A young Nigerian lady recounted her exhausting ordeal after setting out to buy her first iPhone with money she had saved herself.
She explained that her previous device spoilt months earlier, leaving her unable to post or create content online.
Source: TikTok
Lady shares experience with iPhone vendor
Determined to upgrade without relying on family support, she spent weeks putting money aside and later sought recommendations from a colleague who linked her to two sellers.
One of them claimed to specialise in brand new devices and charged more than the other, who dealt in used phones.
Eager for a completely unused device, she chose the more expensive option, unaware of the problems that would follow.
In a detailed video shared on TikTok via the handle @Dia_thefashiongirl, she narrated how she visited the recommended shop and inspected the phone handed to her.
She noticed that the device did not recognise her mobile network, even though her SIM worked perfectly in the seller’s own iPhone.
She also observed that the serial information on the device did not match the details printed on the packaging.
Although she raised concerns, the vendor dismissed her observations and insisted that she proceed with payment, arguing that unsealing the box meant she had automatically accepted the device. Feeling uneasy yet unsure, she paid and left with the phone.
The next day, she went to a mobile service centre to replace her SIM, hoping that would resolve the issue, but the phone still failed to detect her network.
Source: TikTok
When she informed the vendor, he asked her to send back both the device and her SIMs so he could conduct his own checks.
Days passed and the vendor began to encourage her to switch to an eSIM or get new cards entirely.
She refused and instead asked for her money back. He then stated he would keep part of the payment and later became unresponsive.
Frustrated, she reported the matter at a police station in Ikeja, where the seller was summoned.
He admitted he could not immediately repay the full amount and returned part of the money on the spot, completing the refund a few days later.
She then contacted the second vendor and, to her relief, successfully purchased an iPhone twelve, which worked flawlessly and connected smoothly with her other devices.
She narrated:
"I got a brand new iPhone for about three months or more. I've been MIA, no active participation on social media, no content, no posting because my previous phone decided to pack up on me in July. Prior to now, every other phone I've ever used was gotten from me by my father. This time, I was determined to get my dream phone by myself, so I saved up for it. If there's one thing I fear, it's getting a fake iPhone, because boy, oh boy, you can barely tell who is authentic and who is a scam.
"But once I was saving up, I met someone at the place of work who gave me two different vendors' phone numbers. One was more expensive than the other, but he swore that he sold brand new phones, while the other was relatively affordable and sold UK used phones. So I went for the one who claimed to be selling new phones, because who doesn't want a new phone? Certainly not me. If only I knew.
"Anyways, I got to the vendor's place on Sunday and unboxed the phone to test it, and it wasn't seeing every other sim except mine. The vendor tried my sim on his own iPhone, and his phone was seeing my sim. He placed it back in the new phone I wanted to get, and it wasn't seeing it. I refused to pay for it because what am I going to do with a phone that can't see my sim? He insisted that I must pay, that my sim was the problem and I needed to do a welcome back.
"He also stated that I had unboxed the phone and so I had to make payment for the phone. Let me also state that I observed that the serial number on the box of the phone and the phone itself did not tally. I brought it to his notice, and of course, as expected, he defended it and said that, oh, that's how they pack it from the factory, the serial numbers of the phone don't tally, the dot of the box.
"Well, I never got an iPhone before, certainly not a new one, so I really could not tell whether his argument was right or wrong. However, I had watched enough TikTok tutorials on knowing an original iPhone to tell that that could have been a lie. He went further to lock his burglary for only God knows why.
"I reluctantly paid, and the next day, which was a Monday, I went very early to MTN office for a welcome back. And boom, the final review. I did a welcome back, and the phone was still not seeing my sim. I informed him, and he said I should send the phone back, which I did on Tuesday, and he collected both my sims along with him. In his words, he was going to test my sim on other phones to see which one was seeing my sim. By Wednesday, he said he had found out that my sim wasn't working on any of his iPhones, that I needed to change my sim to eSim or get another sim. I said no, because changing to eSim doesn't guarantee that it will work, plus I wasn't caught out to start carrying two phones about, so I demanded a refund.
"He said he will take N20k for the box, and I said no problem, just refund my money. He said alright and left it at that. So I needed to ask, and I said, when will I get my refund? This was on Thursday night. He said since he's giving me my sim back on Saturday, I will get the refund on Sunday. I said I'm not comfortable with that. I see no reason why you're giving me a date for my refund, especially since I have returned your phone. You claim not to be a dubious person, and now that we have gotten to the topic of your refund, you're not responding to your messages. He stopped responding.
"Next morning, I was in Area F, Ikeja, to report this situation. He was invited, and that's when he said he did not have the complete money, and that's why he said Sunday, because he was thinking how would I get the alert since I don't have a phone to put my sim? I said that's not a problem because I can easily check with my ATM card. He signed an undertaking and refunded about 50 percent of the money on the spot. By Sunday, he sent the balance. That same Sunday, I contacted the second vendor, and by Monday, the third of November, 2025, at about 4 PM, I got my first big girl phone, an iPhone 12. It was seeing my sim clearly, pairing with my other gadget easily. Guys, I dodged a bullet! In fact, I dare to say I missed a bullet on this one, and only God could have done it."
Reactions as lady shares experience with iPhone vendor
TikTok users stormed the comments section to react to the video.
@isyabooRicaBelli said:
"Because some f us don’t like to sell things to expensive we just think about the people u thought because he gave u a cheaper price u doubted not all glitter is gold."
@Sarah’s tarot said:
"The only new iPhone you can get in Nigeria now nah 17 series, i had to order my 15pm directly from china to avoid being cheated."
@Essy said:
"You barely see a new iPhone from 13 series downward they are all repackaged have worked in phone village and I can tell u go for uk used instead of new they will just scam u."
@hehehe added:
"Broo there are no new phones in the 13,12 downwards series. I know because I also recently got a 12 pro max and I also wanted a new one."
See the post below:
Lady buys new iPhone 17 Pro Max
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a Nigerian lady who bought the newly released iPhone 17 Pro Max unboxed the device in a video.
Many reacted as she said that it would be her last iPhone as she opened the silver device she just got.
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Source: Legit.ng
