Police bust cybercrime syndicates over N3.62bn investment fraud, romance scams
…Arrest suspects in Lagos, Kano, Anambra, Ekiti over alleged cybercrimes
By Kingsley Omonobi
ABUJA — The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has arrested several suspects in separate investigations into alleged cyber-enabled crimes, including an international investment fraud involving suspected proceeds of about N3.62 billion.
The Centre also arrested suspects over alleged romance scams, sextortion, business email compromise, identity theft, impersonation and the alleged theft and attempted sale of property belonging to a former employer.
The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the NPF-NCCC, AIG Akaninyene Ezima, disclosed this on Wednesday while briefing journalists in Abuja.
Ezima said the Centre’s investigations had uncovered sophisticated cybercrime operations involving victims in Nigeria and several other countries.
N3.62bn investment fraud
According to him, the investigation into the alleged investment fraud followed a petition over the loss of N56.29 million by victims who were allegedly lured into a WhatsApp-based stock trading platform with promises of high returns.
He said operatives arrested Kelechi Sistus Ihekaire, proprietor of Kestart Technology, in Lagos on August 13.
Ezima said forensic examination of devices recovered from the suspect revealed extensive digital records connected to the alleged operation.
He said approximately N3.62 billion in suspected proceeds of crime was allegedly converted into Tether (USDT) stablecoins through Bybit peer-to-peer transactions.
“Ihekaire was arrested in Lagos on August 13 and allegedly admitted ownership of Kestart Technology and involvement in peer-to-peer cryptocurrency trading on Bybit,” he said.
The police said they would pursue legal processes for the forfeiture of funds under lien in the company’s account and associated cryptocurrency assets, with a view to facilitating victim restitution where applicable.
Suspected romance scammer arrested
Ezima also disclosed the arrest of Abdulwajeed Abdullahi, who allegedly operated under the pseudonym “Captain Junaid”, over an alleged romance scam and sextortion.
He said the suspect was arrested in Kano on August 4 following a petition by a female victim.
According to him, Abdullahi allegedly contacted the woman on TikTok before moving the conversation to WhatsApp, where he developed a romantic relationship with her and allegedly persuaded her to send intimate photographs and videos.
The police said he subsequently demanded $3,000 and threatened to release the materials if she failed to pay.
“Further investigation identified another victim, also reported losing N3,500,000 to the same ‘Captain Junaid’ identity,” Ezima said.
He added that another female victim from Bauchi State allegedly paid the suspect $1,500 under a purported foreign exchange trading arrangement.
Forensic examination of devices recovered from Abdullahi allegedly revealed intimate photographs and videos belonging to multiple women, as well as forged academic certificates and identity cards bearing his photograph but different names.
Ezima said the suspect allegedly confessed to commencing romance scam activities in January 2026 and admitted using the identity and publicly available photographs of a Saudi pilot, “Captain Abdullahi Rajhi”, to create the fake persona.
BEC suspect arrested in Lekki
The AIG further disclosed the arrest of David Adeyemi Temitope in Lagos over an alleged sophisticated Business Email Compromise (BEC) operation.
He said the suspect was arrested at his residence in Megamound Estate, Lekki, on July 20, following an investigation conducted in collaboration with foreign law enforcement agencies under the Budapest Convention 24/7 Network.
According to Ezima, forensic examination of devices recovered from the suspect revealed email records linked to alleged victims in more than 50 countries, including Canada, Germany, the United States, India, France and the Netherlands.
He said the suspect’s Bank Verification Number was linked to accounts with six financial institutions and fintech platforms, including GTBank, Zenith Bank, FairMoney, Carbon, OPay and PalmPay.
A Mercedes-Benz AMG GLC 43, suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of crime, was also recovered.
“The investigation further established that the suspect made in excess of N100 million from the criminal enterprise,” Ezima said.
He explained that the suspect allegedly used phishing kits obtained from a vendor on Telegram to compromise Microsoft 365 login credentials belonging to employees of targeted companies.
Two arrested over identity theft
In another case, the police arrested Emeka Egba Anthony, 28, and Ogboji Solomon Emeka, 29, in Anambra State over alleged conspiracy, identity theft, impersonation and computer-related fraud.
The arrests followed a complaint by a senior civil servant who alleged that his identity had been stolen and used on WhatsApp and Facebook.
Ezima said operatives arrested the suspects on August 4 and recovered 24 registered and 33 unregistered MTN SIM cards, 26 registered and 18 unregistered Airtel SIM cards, as well as an MTN toolkit from Anthony.
He said Anthony allegedly admitted being a registered toolkit operator with MTN and Airtel and engaging in the sale of registered and unregistered SIM cards.
He also allegedly admitted creating a social media profile using the identity of “Catherine Harry”, purportedly a UK citizen, to defraud individuals in India.
The second suspect, Ogboji, allegedly admitted dealing in pre-registered SIM cards, which the police said could facilitate identity theft, impersonation and other cybercrimes.
Suspected impersonator arrested
The Centre also arrested Babatunde Olamilekan Idowu, popularly known as “CSP Bamiseye”, over alleged impersonation of a serving Commissioner of Police at the Force Criminal Investigation Department, Abuja.
According to Ezima, the suspect and other members of the alleged syndicate, who remain at large, purportedly impersonated senior police and government officials to defraud a victim of N17 million.
He said Idowu allegedly posed as CSP Bamiseye, while other members of the group allegedly impersonated the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
The suspect was arrested in Ekiti State and allegedly confessed to the offence.
Ezima urged members of the public to verify the identities of individuals who contact them while claiming to be police officers or senior government officials.
Suspect arrested over alleged property theft
The AIG also disclosed the arrest of 40-year-old Paulsurplus Yohanna from Paiko Local Government Area of Niger State over the alleged theft and attempted sale of land documents and other property belonging to his former employer.
Yohanna, an employee of a foreign national resident in Abuja, was arrested on August 13 following intelligence received by the NPF-NCCC.
According to Ezima, several land title documents allegedly belonging to the suspect’s former employer were recovered from him at the time of his arrest.
Preliminary investigation allegedly showed that the suspect was disengaged from his employment in January 2026 and subsequently sold one of the properties in the Kagini area of Abuja.
The police also alleged that the suspect duplicated a key to his former employer’s office, forged some land documents and sold a Toyota RAV4 belonging to his employer for N25 million.
Ezima said operatives had commenced efforts to trace and recover the proceeds of the alleged transactions and identify other properties and documents allegedly taken by the suspect.
He said the suspect remained in police custody as investigations continued to determine the full extent of the alleged offences and identify other persons who may have participated in or benefited from the transactions.
Police warn cybercriminals
Ezima warned cybercriminals that the use of encrypted platforms, cryptocurrency or false identities would not shield them from investigation and prosecution.
“The long arm of the law will catch up with you,” he warned.
He said the NPF-NCCC was strengthening its technical capabilities and international partnerships to identify, trace and prosecute individuals involved in cyber-enabled crimes.
The suspects in the various cases are expected to face prosecution under the Cybercrimes Act and other applicable laws upon the conclusion of investigations.
The post Police bust cybercrime syndicates over N3.62bn investment fraud, romance scams appeared first on Vanguard News.