By Nkechi Eze
In a landmark ruling on Thursday, July 7, 2025, Justice D. E. Osiagor of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, convicted and sentenced nine Chinese nationals to one year imprisonment each for cyber-terrorism and internet fraud.
The convicted individuals Qin Xiao Yong, Luo Mao Yang, Liu Ni Ni, Liu Gang, Sun Qi (also known as Wan Jin Ping), Zhang Juan, Li de Wen, Fun Min, and Tan Ming, were part of a wider syndicate of 792 suspects arrested during a coordinated sting operation tagged “Eagle Flush Operation,” carried out by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on December 19, 2024, in Lagos.
According to an official statement released by the EFCC’s spokesperson Dele Oyewale, the nine were arraigned in February 2025 by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the Commission on a separate one-count charge of conspiracy to engage in cyber-terrorism and internet fraud. The charge stated that the defendants, in December 2024, conspired to access computer systems for the purpose of destabilising and damaging Nigeria’s economy and social structure.
The charge reads:
“That you, Qin Xiao Yong, Luo Mao Yang, Liu Ni Ni, Liu Gang, Sun Qi (a.k.a Wan Jin Ping), Zhang Juan, Li de Wen, Fun Min, Tan Ming, sometime in December, 2024 at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired amongst yourselves to commit an offence to wit: cause to be accessed computer system used for the purpose of destabilising and destroying the economy and social structure of Nigeria and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 27 (1) (b) and punishable under Section 18(1) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act 2015.”
The defendants initially pleaded not guilty to the charge but reversed their plea to guilty during Monday’s court proceedings. Following their new plea, EFCC counsel R.A. Abdulrasheed urged the court to convict and sentence the defendants accordingly.
Justice Osiagor thereafter convicted all nine and sentenced each to one year imprisonment, starting from their date of arrest, December 19, 2024. The court also imposed a fine of N1,000,000 (One Million Naira) on each convict.
In addition, the judge directed the Comptroller General of Immigration to ensure the immediate repatriation of the convicts to China within seven days. The court further ordered the forfeiture of all items seized from the convicts at the time of arrest, including mobile phones, laptops, computers, and routers, to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The EFCC described the conviction as a significant milestone in its ongoing fight against transnational cybercrime networks targeting Nigeria’s economic and social infrastructure.
