Nineteen people have been arrested in Sasaabi, in the Accra Region, as part of an international crackdown on suspected online scam operations targeting victims in the United Kingdom, the United States and other countries.
The operation, hosted by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA), brought together more than 100 representatives from law enforcement agencies and technology companies to disrupt fraud networks operating across Africa.
Authorities seized 303 electronic devices during the operation in Ghana, while 117 people identified as suspected victims of human trafficking are awaiting return to Nigeria.
Nine additional arrests were made in Nigeria’s Delta State, where officers seized six laptops, 35 mobile phones and 12 routers.
The NCA said the arrests were part of a wider effort targeting suspected fraudsters and the digital infrastructure they use to reach victims through social media and other online platforms.
Millions of accounts removed
The operation, held from October 6 to 9, involved law enforcement agencies from 15 organisations and representatives from 15 technology companies, including Meta, Microsoft and Google.
It was the fourth initiative of its kind and the first hosted by the NCA. Participants included officers from the Ghanaian Cyber Security Authority, the Nigeria Police Force, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other international agencies.
Meta removed more than 3.7 million accounts, Pages and Groups associated with scams targeting people in the US, UK and elsewhere.
More than 1,110 West African Facebook and Instagram accounts linked to information supplied by Report Fraud were disabled. A further 490 Facebook accounts and more than 490 advertising accounts identified through OCC Data Enforcement were also disabled.
OCC Data Domain Enforcement additionally disabled more than 380 scam domains assessed as potentially linked to those identified during the operation.
Private-sector partners identified a total of $11 million in funds that could potentially be frozen.
Earlier raids in Ghana
The NCA said Ghanaian law enforcement agencies had also led operations against suspected scam centres in the same location at the end of September.
Those raids resulted in multiple arrests and the seizure of 85 mobile phones and 44 laptops. Several people initially taken into custody were subsequently identified as suspected victims of trafficking who may have been coerced into criminal activity.
The operation was led by Ghana’s Cyber Security Authority, with support from the NCA, Ghana Police Service, the FBI and Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The latest international operation involved the sharing of information to identify suspected fraud enablers and locate people allegedly operating the schemes.
Report Fraud worked with Meta to provide data to identify accounts and other infrastructure linked to suspected fraud. The NCA said law enforcement agencies and technology companies collaborated to trace suspects, leading to arrests.
Officials stress international cooperation
Nick Sharp, Deputy Director of Fraud at the NCA, said cross-border partnerships were essential to tackling fraud networks that operated internationally.
“Fraud is a global problem and it takes partnership working across international boundaries to tackle it,” he said.
He said the agency would continue working with international and private-sector partners to pursue fraudsters and disrupt the online infrastructure they relied on.
Meta’s Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Chris Sonderby, said the company had removed more than 3.7 million accounts, Pages and Groups and shared information on more than 30 suspected scam centres, contributing to arrests and the identification of trafficking victims.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the operation had resulted in arrests across multiple African countries, the seizure of hundreds of devices and the identification of at least $11 million in potentially freezable funds.
The UK government said its planned Online Crime Centre would build on such joint operations to dismantle criminal networks and bring offenders to justice.
Warning signs of investment fraud
Authorities have urged the public to be alert to possible investment scams, particularly online offers that promise guaranteed returns or unusually low-risk investments.
Other warning signs include endorsements from celebrities or well-known figures, invitations to join exclusive investment groups, and requests to move conversations to instant messaging or social media platforms.
People should also be wary of anyone asking them to keep an investment secret from family or friends, pay taxes or release fees before withdrawing funds, or invest more money under continued pressure.