The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested 792 suspects including Nigerian, Chinese, Arab and Filipino nationals allegedly involved in cryptocurrency investment fraud and romance scams.
Penpushing reports that Director of Public Affairs of the commission Wilson Uwujaren, made this known during a press briefing on Monday in Lagos, explaining that the operatives raided a seven-storey building in Lagos to arrest the suspects
The Director stated that this followed months of surveillance, adding that the suspects were cornered in a surprise operation at their hideout known as Bigleaf located at number 7, Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.
“Among the foreigners arrested are 148 Chinese, 40 Filipinos, two Kharzartans, one Pakistani, one Indonesian. Investigation established that the foreign nationals use the facility at 7, Oyin Jolayemi Street, which could be mistaken for a corporate headquarters of a financial establishment to train their Nigerian accomplices on how to initiate romance and investment scams and also use the identities of Nigerians to perpetrate their criminal activities’, Uwujaren said
Penpushing further reports that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) disclosed that the syndicate runs an independent power supply to carry put its nefarious activities, adding that all the floors were equipped with high-end desktop computers.
“All the floors are equipped with high-end desktop computers. On the fifth floor alone, investigators recovered 500 SIM cards of local telcos that were bought for criminal purposes’, the Director of Public Affairs stated.
Penpushing also reports that the Acting Director in Lagos, Micheal Wetkaz, added that the Nigerian nationals recruited by the foreign kingpins’ scout for victims online through phishing, targeting mostly Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and several others from European countries.
“They usually arm them with desktop computers and mobile devices and create fake profiles for them. The Nigerian accomplices are equally provided with logs that allow them access to foreign communication lines and victims, which they chat with on WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram. They are also assigned WhatsApp accounts linked to foreign telephone numbers, especially from Germany and Italy’, he said
Penpushing reports that Wetkaz explained that the employees’ primary purpose is to engage with victims in romantic conversations and phantom business and investment discussions to trick them to shop on the purported online investment shopping platform.
The Acting Director disclosed that those who show interest, activation fees for an account on the platform starts from $35USD adding that the requirement to be a part of the company is proficiency in typing before they were taken through a two-week induction on how to impersonate foreign females in romance scam chats and convince victims to invest in their employers’ Cryptocurrency investment scam.
“Once the Nigerians are able to win the confidence of would-be victims, the foreigners would take over the actual task of defrauding the victims and proceed to block their Nigerian accomplices from the network. This would then leave them in the dark about the transaction’,he said.
“Surprisingly, the Nigerians do not know the owners of the ‘company’ they work for, as they neither get letters of appointments nor receive payment from a corporate account. Investigation revealed that they are paid either in cash or through an individual’s account. Further investigation is ongoing to establish the extent of the scam and the accomplices, including the likelihood of any collaboration with organized international fraud cells’.
Penpushing further reports that the commission said recovered exhibits include desktop computers, mobile phones, laptop computers, and cars, stating that the suspects are being held with a valid remand warrant and will be arraigned in court soon.
The unprecedented number of detainees from a single operation has overwhelmed the agency’s Lagos offices, leading to overcrowded cells, while sources revealed following the huge arrest many suspects are being held in office spaces due to inadequate facilities.
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