Police nab seven suspects over alleged N3.6bn crypto, internet fraud

The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrimes Centre (NPF-NCCC) has arrested seven suspects over alleged involvement in money laundering, business email compromise, sextortion, blackmail, romance scams and other internet-related crimes.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the centre, Akaninyene Ezima, disclosed the arrests on Wednesday during a press conference in Abuja, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Ezima said one of the suspects was apprehended following a request from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office, known as the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), to preserve data linked to an Internet Protocol (IP) address allegedly used in a sophisticated business email compromise scheme.

The AIG said the investigation, codenamed “Operation Broken Mask”, was conducted in collaboration with the BKA and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) under the Budapest Convention 24/7 Network.

According to him, the suspect was arrested on July 20 at his residence in Megamound Estate, Lekki, Lagos, after investigative processes linked him to the alleged scheme.

Ezima said forensic examination of devices recovered from the suspect’s residence revealed more than 12.5 million email logs belonging to victims in over 50 countries.

He said the suspect’s bank verification number (BVN) was linked to accounts with six financial institutions and fintech platforms, while a Mercedes-Benz AMG GLC 43 allegedly purchased with proceeds of crime was also recovered.

The police chief said the suspect allegedly used phishing kits obtained through Telegram to compromise the Microsoft 365 credentials of employees at targeted companies.

Ezima said the suspect allegedly made more than N100 million from the operation.

“The suspect’s bank verification number was linked to accounts maintained with six financial institutions and fintech platforms, including Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank, FairMoney, Carbon, OPay and PalmPay,” he said.

The AIG also disclosed that the centre arrested a technology company owner over alleged international cyber-enabled investment fraud and money laundering.

He said the suspect was arrested following a petition filed by Ugwu Francisca & Co. on behalf of Elizabeth and Prince Iruaregbon.

According to Ezima, the petition alleged that the complainants lost N56.3 million after they were induced to invest in a WhatsApp-based stock trading platform that promised high returns.

He said the investigation traced the funds to accounts operated by entities allegedly linked to the syndicate.

Ezima said the suspect’s technology company allegedly served as a channel for converting proceeds of the fraud.

He said an examination of the company’s account with Save Heaven Microfinance Bank showed terminal cash-out inflows and outflows of N3.2 billion between October 30, 2025, and May 31, 2026.

The AIG added that investigators found that about N3.6 billion in suspected proceeds of crime was converted to Tether (USDT) stablecoins through Bybit peer-to-peer transactions.

He said the suspect was arrested on August 13 in Agiliti, Lagos, and allegedly admitted to owning Kestart Technology and engaging in peer-to-peer cryptocurrency trading on Bybit.

Ezima further said two suspects were arrested in Anambra over alleged conspiracy, identity theft, impersonation and computer-related fraud.

He said the investigation followed a complaint by Faruk Yabo, permanent secretary at the federal ministry of solid minerals development, who alleged that an individual was impersonating him on WhatsApp and Facebook.

According to him, the suspects were arrested on August 4 following technical intelligence and other investigative activities.

He said police recovered 24 registered and 33 unregistered MTN SIM cards, 26 registered and 18 unregistered Airtel SIM cards, as well as an MTN toolkit.

Ezima said one of the suspects admitted to buying and selling registered and unregistered SIM cards and creating a social media account in the identity of a United Kingdom (UK) citizen, which was allegedly used to defraud people in India.

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