Spread the word
The International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) has arrested two Nigerian internet fraud suspects and 1,460 others across Africa in a multinational operation targeting cybercrime and financial fraud.
The operation, codenamed Operation Serengeti III, targeted cyber-enabled fraud, ransomware attacks, business email compromise (BEC), online scams and digital extortion, leading to the arrest of 1,462 suspects and the recovery of more than $105 million in illicit funds.
According to INTERPOL, investigators also disrupted 10,909 malicious networks, identified 65,929 victims and linked the criminal activities uncovered during the operation to financial losses exceeding $385 million.
The operation involved 21 countries, comprising 20 African nations and the United States, in a coordinated effort to dismantle cybercriminal networks operating across national borders.
The participating African countries were Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Nigerian suspects linked to phishing, investment fraud
In Nigeria, authorities arrested a suspect allegedly involved in a large-scale phishing and business email compromise operation that harvested software credentials and accumulated approximately 2.1 million email addresses.
Investigators also recovered a luxury vehicle suspected to have been purchased with proceeds from criminal activities.
In a separate investigation, Nigerian authorities targeted an international investment fraud scheme allegedly promoted through messaging applications, leading to the arrest of another suspect.
Financial investigations uncovered the movement of more than $2.4 million in suspected criminal proceeds, a substantial portion of which was allegedly laundered through cryptocurrency transactions.
The arrests formed part of the wider operation aimed at identifying suspects, disrupting criminal infrastructure and tracing funds generated through online fraud.
Uganda, Angola record major breakthroughs
Beyond Nigeria, authorities in Uganda dismantled two transnational fraud networks and arrested 365 foreign nationals allegedly linked to online investment and pension fraud targeting victims in Asia.
In Angola, law enforcement agencies shut down two illegal cryptocurrency mining centres, arrested nine suspects and seized more than 2,000 cryptocurrency mining devices.
The operations highlighted the range of cyber-enabled criminal activities investigated across participating countries, from online investment scams and identity-related fraud to cryptocurrency-related offences.
INTERPOL said the operation received support from private cybersecurity companies, including Group-IB, Kaspersky, Fortinet, Team Cymru and Meta.
The companies provided intelligence on suspicious domains, digital infrastructure and other indicators that helped investigators identify and disrupt criminal networks.
INTERPOL warns against borderless cybercrime
INTERPOL Director of Cybercrime, Neal Jetton, said cybercriminal networks were exploiting technology to target victims across different jurisdictions on an unprecedented scale.
“Cybercrime networks operate without regard for borders, exploiting technology to target victims on an unprecedented scale,” Jetton said.
The organisation said investigations were continuing, indicating that further developments could emerge as authorities analyse evidence, trace suspected proceeds and pursue other individuals connected to the criminal networks.
The operation underscores the international scale of cybercrime and the importance of cooperation among law enforcement agencies, financial investigators and private technology companies in identifying offenders and disrupting their activities.
Spread the word