The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC) has uncovered a series of major cybercrime operations, dismantling international fraud syndicates, exposing a multi-billion-naira telecommunications fraud, and arresting several suspects linked to online scams, identity theft, cryptocurrency fraud and the dissemination of false information capable of threatening national security.
Speaking at a press briefing, the Police Public Relations Officer CSP Anietie Iniedu, said the operations underscore the Nigeria Police Force’s commitment to combating cybercrime, protecting critical national infrastructure and safeguarding both local and international victims of online fraud.
In one of the operations, the Police dismantled a suspected international cyber-enabled fraud syndicate operating from Asaba, Delta State, following intelligence provided by the National Crime Agency (NCA) of the British High Commission in Abuja.
According to Iniedu, operatives executed a court-authorised search on July 4, 2026, arrested six suspects and dismantled what investigators described as a scam centre allegedly used to impersonate internationally recognised personalities in order to defraud foreign victims.
He identified the suspects as Roland Stephen, Oligoron Francis Brakemi, Obasi Obinna Benjamin, Obasi Chris Chibueze, Ogbuzuru Destiny and Osakwe Chidima.
Recovered exhibits included a Mercedes-Benz GLK SUV, 11 mobile phones, a laptop computer, a tablet device, a wristwatch and a Starlink satellite dish with a Wi-Fi router. Preliminary forensic analysis, he said, revealed evidence of online impersonation and other cyber-enabled fraudulent activities, while investigations continue.
The Police spokesman also disclosed that the NPF-NCCC, working jointly with the City of London Police under Operation Seraphim, dismantled part of a transnational cybercrime network specialising in identity theft, cryptocurrency fraud and the sale of stolen personal and financial information through Telegram.
He said investigations identified 24 threat actors operating across 434 Telegram chat rooms, with several members traced to Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State.
Four suspects, Daniel Andrew Sopuruchi, Josephine Lawal, Emmanuel Ifeanyi Ike and David Emeka Chimuanya were arrested, while the alleged ringleader, David Augustine, a dual Nigerian-Ghanaian citizen, remains at large.
According to Iniedu, investigators recovered stolen personally identifiable information, including driver’s licences, credit card details, identity cards and online banking credentials, alongside digital evidence relating to cryptocurrency transactions, PayPal fraud, gift card scams, romance scams and Telegram-based criminal groups.
The briefing also highlighted the arrest of three suspects linked to an alleged high-yield investment scam masquerading as an investment platform affiliated with the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) and endorsed by renowned economist Yemi Kale.
The suspects, Thomas Daniel and two Chinese nationals, Zhu Tian Yu and Qu Yuan Bin, allegedly recruited victims through a WhatsApp group known as “Stock Risk Control Center.”
Iniedu said investigations established that approximately ₦29.81 million was obtained from unsuspecting investors before the proceeds were converted into USDT cryptocurrency and transferred to digital wallets linked to the alleged mastermind, identified simply as Nandi, who remains at large.
Recovered digital evidence included mobile phones, laptop computers, Telegram communications, cryptocurrency wallet addresses, Kuda Bank account records and audio recordings documenting the fraudulent transactions.
The Police also announced the arrest of Ifechukwu David Ugwa over the alleged publication of a manipulated video involving social media personality Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, and fabricated audio falsely attributed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
According to Iniedu, digital investigations revealed that the suspect allegedly synchronised authentic video footage with manipulated audio to falsely portray the President as deliberately sustaining insecurity in Nigeria for political purposes.
He said the suspect was arrested in Delta State and admitted publishing the doctored video through the TikTok account “RATEL TV,” which has approximately 127,000 followers. Electronic devices and evidence showing the use of the Snaptik application to remove TikTok watermarks before reposting the manipulated content were recovered.
The case, he added, has been recommended for prosecution on charges including criminal conspiracy, publication of false information, computer-related forgery, cyberstalking and criminal defamation.
Similarly, the Police arrested Stephen Omoregie over a viral Facebook video falsely claiming that nearly 1,000 Boko Haram members had been deployed to Abuja.
Iniedu said the suspect published the video through the Facebook page “OKUTA NA EDO (Righteous Blog),” which has about 157,000 followers. The post generated approximately 11 million views and over 13,000 shares.
He disclosed that investigations established the information was entirely false and capable of causing widespread panic and undermining national security. The suspect was arrested in Benin City, Edo State, and reportedly admitted publishing the content after obtaining it from a TikTok user identified as “English Alhaji.” The matter has also been recommended for prosecution.
Perhaps the most significant case presented during the briefing involved an alleged ₦7.7 billion fraud targeting MTN Nigeria’s billing and payment systems.
According to Iniedu, investigations commenced after MTN Nigeria Communications Plc reported the unauthorised use of staff login credentials to manipulate its billing platform.
He said investigations uncovered a criminal syndicate involving both internal collaborators and external accomplices who exploited stolen login credentials and Remote Access Service (RAS) tools to fraudulently credit airtime, convert it into data bundles and distribute the data to more than 2,016 prepaid lines.
The fraudulent activities, he noted, resulted in estimated losses of about ₦7.7 billion.
Six suspects Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu and Masa’ud Sa’ad were arrested during coordinated operations in Kano, Katsina and Abuja.
Recovered exhibits included over 400 laptops, more than 1,000 mobile phones, three Point-of-Sale machines, a Toyota RAV4 vehicle, 9,000 US dollars recovered from the vehicle, an additional 800 dollars recovered from Idris Mohammed Garba, ₦100,000 in cash, as well as financial records, bank statements, system logs and digital evidence relating to the unauthorised access.
Iniedu said MTN was able to reverse 2,931.79 terabytes of stolen data valued at approximately ₦3.8 billion, while efforts are ongoing to arrest other principal suspects still at large and completely dismantle the criminal network.
He reiterated that the Nigeria Police Force remains committed to strengthening collaboration with local and international law enforcement agencies to combat cybercrime, protect critical infrastructure and ensure that those responsible for technology-enabled crimes are brought to justice.
