A Tale of Betrayal, Deceit, And Blackmail Setting the Record Straight on Zaineb Haidi K. Rambo

By

Ruth Keyamo Omonigho

My name is Ruth Keyamo Omonigho, and I am the younger sister to Festus Keyamo, SAN, Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I feel compelled to address a deeply unfortunate situation involving a former acquaintance, Zaineb Haidi K. Rambo, whose actions have brought shame not only to herself but to the memory of those who extended undeserved kindness to her.

This is not a story I wished to tell publicly. However, in the face of outright blackmail, falsehoods, and potential damage to my family’s reputation, it is necessary to set the record straight with facts and truth.

A Reconnection Rooted in Sympathy

I first met Zaineb through a mutual friend in New York about six to seven years ago. Our friendship was casual and later went cold around 2020 or 2021, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, she reconnected with me in August/September 2023, shortly after the appointment of my brother as a Minister.

She congratulated me warmly and began to re-enter my life and that of my family with apparent sincerity. She shared heart-wrenching stories about her ailing mother in New York and her inability to afford rent or medical care. She expressed her desire to return with her mother to Uganda due to the deteriorating health condition and lack of resources.

Moved by her story, I sought help from my family, including my brother. At my urging, he agreed to assist, especially since he happened to be in New York for an official event. I introduced them, and he generously contributed to the effort of flying her and her mother to Uganda.

An Act of Generosity Met with Deceit

Soon after, she contacted me again from Uganda now stranded, broke, and desperate. She pleaded for assistance as her mother’s condition worsened, and they lacked access to appropriate medical care. Again, out of compassion and a sense of obligation, I persuaded my family to intervene. My brother wrote letters of invitation and funded their travel to Nigeria, where they arrived on December 22, 2023.

Upon arrival, Zaineb presented herself, her mother, a 4-year-old boy named Prinston, and a 24-year-old man named Nsubuga Douglas. She claimed the boy was her nephew and Douglas her cousin. They were immediately taken to ASK Medical and Diagnostics, Maitama, where both Zaineb and her mother began treatment.

As weeks passed, their bills mounted. We paid multiple large medical expenses including:

N676,250 (Dec 28, 2023 – Zaineb’s treatment)

N3,905,260 (Jan 19, 2024 – Mother’s treatment)

N2,432,310 (Feb 15, 2024 – Mother’s treatment)

When ASK Medical could no longer continue the mother’s care due to advanced heart disease and kidney failure, they were referred to Zenith Medical and Kidney Centre (ZMKC), Apo. Additional payments were made there:

N2,000,000 (April 23, 2024)

N2,000,000 (May 6, 2024)

N1,428,250 (May 15, 2024)

N2,000,000 (May 22, 2024 – by a family friend, Tunde Moshood)

Despite the emotional and financial strain, we stood by her. I personally visited the hospital regularly, provided moral support, and ensured she lacked nothing.

Shocking Discoveries and Hidden Truths

In the midst of this intense period, a disturbing revelation came to light: Prinston, the 4-year-old boy, was not her nephew as claimed. Reports from Uganda suggested that his parents were unaccounted for. I pressed her to present legal documents, adoption papers, or even speak to the boy’s parents none of which she could provide.

Under intense scrutiny, she eventually confessed to forging documents including a consent letter and passport application in order to bring the boy into Nigeria under false pretenses. More shockingly, she also forged papers for her biological daughter Layah (with whom she shares custody battles in New York), using a forged letter from the girl’s father, James Marino, to obtain a Nigerian visa.

Furthermore, Zaineb had consistently misrepresented her age, using forged documentation to claim she was born in 1990, when her actual birth year is 1980 a deceitful act intended to garner sympathy and paint herself as a struggling young mother.

It became clear we were not dealing with a helpless friend, but a suspected child trafficker and serial fraudster. My family had unwittingly been drawn into aiding someone whose actions could have had grave legal consequences.

Attempted Extortion and Blackmail

Despite the overwhelming support we had given including preparations for her mother’s burial, mortuary arrangements, and ongoing emotional and financial support Zaineb’s tone changed. She began making outrageous demands, including:

A N5 million casket

Custom burial outfits for her entire family

Other financial requests under the guise of planning an “international” funeral

Realizing we were being emotionally manipulated and blackmailed, I involved the Nigerian Immigration Service. As Zaineb became increasingly uncooperative going so far as to hide international passports in an old chair to evade deportation the authorities intervened.

She was deported to Uganda on June 7, 2024, and the remains of her mother followed on June 8, 2024, with all proper documentation and financial support facilitated by my family. The cause of death was officially diagnosed as Septic Shock.

From Villain to False Victim

Months after her deportation, she resurfaced, this time trying to blackmail my family through a mutual contact, Mr. Sani. Upon refusal, she turned to spreading false narratives perhaps in hopes of salvaging her image or coercing us into silence.

But let it be known: Zaineb Haidi K. Rambo is not a victim of injustice. She is the architect of her own disgrace. She exploited friendship, defrauded a compassionate family, forged legal documents, and misrepresented herself at every turn.

This narrative is not driven by anger or vengeance but by truth and a need to protect our name and our dignity from slander and manipulation.

Let this serve as the first and last public statement on this matter. We owe her no further attention.