Nigerian, American and British law enforcement agencies have disrupted major cybercrimes networks operating across West Africa, arresting 28 suspects and identifying 117 trafficking victims in Ghana.
The victims are awaiting repatriation to Nigeria following an international operation targeting criminal syndicates using online platforms to defraud people worldwide.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced the development on Tuesday evening, describing the coordinated crackdown as a major disruption of transnational criminal networks operating from West Africa.
The operation, conducted between Oct. 6 and Oct. 9, involved intelligence sharing, coordinated arrests and the removal of millions of fraudulent social media accounts.
According to the department, Nigerian authorities arrested nine suspects during the operation, while Ghanaian security agencies apprehended 19 others.
Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) confirmed that the Nigerian arrests occurred across Delta State, where investigators seized six laptops, 35 mobile phones and 12 routers.
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In Ghana, authorities arrested 19 suspects in Sasaabi, near Accra, and seized 303 electronic devices suspected of being connected to fraudulent activities.
Investigators also identified 117 trafficking victims at the Ghanaian locations, with arrangements being made for their return to Nigeria.
The operation involved Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Nigeria Police Force’s National Cybercrime Centre and other international security agencies.
Assistant U.S. Attorney General Tysen Duva commended Nigerian and Ghanaian security personnel for their contributions to the operation.
“I am especially grateful to the courageous law enforcement officers in Ghana and Nigeria,” Duva said.
He explained that cooperation between law enforcement agencies and technology companies had enabled investigators to identify suspects, dismantle fraudulent networks and protect victims.
The Justice Department disclosed that participating technology companies removed more than 3.7 million fraudulent accounts, pages and groups targeting people in several countries.
The companies also provided intelligence concerning more than 30 suspected scam centres, contributing to arrests, cryptocurrency seizures and the identification of trafficking victims.
Investigators identified approximately 11 million dollars in potentially freezable funds linked to suspected fraudulent operations.
The authorities clarified that the identified funds had not necessarily been recovered or permanently confiscated.
The disrupted schemes included cryptocurrency investment fraud, impersonation of law enforcement officers, online extortion and other sophisticated financial scams.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who leads the Scam Center Strike Force in Washington, emphasised the importance of international cooperation declaring, “transnational fraud demands a transnational response”..
The NCA disclosed that earlier enforcement operations in Ghana had also uncovered suspected trafficking victims who appeared to have been coerced into participating in criminal activities.
According to the agency, the latest operation demonstrated the growing importance of cooperation between African security agencies, international investigators and technology companies.
The U.S. Justice Department said the participating agencies would continue pursuing individuals and organisations responsible for international cyberfraud and related trafficking offences. (NAN)
