The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrimes Centre (NPF-NCCC) has arrested seven suspects over alleged money laundering, business email compromise, sextortion, blackmail, romance scams and other internet-related offences.
Akaninyene Ezima, Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the centre, disclosed the arrests on Wednesday at a news conference in Abuja, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
One of the suspects was arrested following a request from the German Federal Police, known as the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), to preserve data linked to an IP address allegedly used in a business email compromise operation.
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 Ezima, the suspect was arrested on July 20 at his residence in Megamound Estate, Lekki, Lagos, after investigators linked him to the alleged operation.
Forensic examination of devices recovered from the residence reportedly uncovered more than 12.5 million email logs belonging to victims in over 50 countries.
The police said the suspect’s Bank Verification Number (BVN) was linked to accounts with six financial institutions and fintech platforms. A Mercedes-Benz AMG GLC 43 allegedly purchased with proceeds of crime was also recovered.
Ezima said the suspect allegedly used phishing kits obtained through Telegram to compromise Microsoft 365 credentials belonging to employees of targeted companies. He allegedly made more than N100 million from the operation.
The AIG also announced the arrest of a technology company owner over alleged international cyber-enabled investment fraud and money laundering.
He said the suspect was arrested after a petition filed by Ugwu Francisca & Co. on behalf of Elizabeth and Prince Iruaregbon alleged that the complainants lost N56.3 million after being induced to invest through a WhatsApp-based stock trading platform that promised high returns.
Investigators allegedly traced the funds to accounts operated by entities linked to the suspected syndicate.
Ezima said the suspect’s technology company allegedly served as a channel for converting proceeds from the fraud. An examination of the company’s account with Save Heaven Microfinance Bank reportedly showed terminal cash-out inflows and outflows totalling N3.2 billion between October 30, 2025, and May 31, 2026.
The police also alleged that about N3.6 billion in suspected proceeds of crime was converted to Tether (USDT) stablecoins through Bybit peer-to-peer transactions.
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.
Two other suspects were arrested in Anambra State over alleged conspiracy, identity theft, impersonation and computer-related fraud.
The arrests form part of the NPF-NCCC’s ongoing investigations into suspected cyber-enabled financial crimes.
This report is based on the account published by TheCable on August 27, 2026. The allegations remain subject to investigation and due legal process.
