Key points
- Nigerian authorities arrested two suspects in separate cybercrime cases during Operation Serengeti III.
- One case involves an investment fraud scheme tied to more than $2.4 million, much of it laundered through cryptocurrency.
- The 21-country operation led to 1,462 arrests and the recovery of more than $105 million.
Nigerian authorities have arrested two suspects in separate cybercrime investigations, including one tied to an international investment fraud scheme that moved more than $2.4 million in suspected criminal proceeds, INTERPOL said.
The arrests were part of Operation Serengeti III, a cybercrime enforcement effort coordinated from June 29 to Aug. 31 with law enforcement agencies from 21 countries.
INTERPOL laid out the details in a statement on its website, which PUNCH Metro obtained Thursday.
In the first case, Nigerian investigators arrested a suspect accused of running a large phishing and business email compromise operation.
The scheme harvested software credentials and built up roughly 2.1 million email addresses, according to the agency.
Officers also recovered a luxury vehicle they believe was bought with criminal proceeds.
A second investigation went after an international investment fraud scheme promoted through messaging apps. That one ended with another arrest.
Financial investigators traced more than $2.4 million in suspected proceeds, much of it allegedly laundered through cryptocurrency.
The statement did not name either suspect.
Across all participating countries, the operation produced 1,462 arrests and disrupted 10,909 malicious networks.
Authorities recovered more than $105 million in illicit funds and identified 65,929 victims targeted by cybercriminal networks.
INTERPOL said financial investigations tied the criminal activity to losses above $385 million.
The operation focused on cyber-enabled fraud, ransomware, business email compromise, online scams and digital extortion.
Private-sector partners supplied intelligence, technical analysis and operational expertise, helping investigators pick out targets and map criminal networks.
Neal Jetton, INTERPOL’s director of cybercrime, said criminal networks use technology to reach victims across national borders.
Cybercrime is “increasingly borderless,” he said, but cooperation between countries remains one of the most effective ways to disrupt those networks, recover assets and protect communities from digital harm.
Several investigations that came out of the operation are still active, INTERPOL said. Authorities are working to identify more suspects, trace illicit proceeds and analyze seized digital evidence.
Besides Nigeria, participating countries included Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Congo, Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, the United States, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
