The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, has raised concerns that organised foreign fraud syndicates are establishing criminal cells in Nigerian cities and recruiting young Nigerians into cybercrimes, including cryptocurrency fraud.
A statement on Wednesday by the EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, revealed that Olukoyede made these remarks while receiving participants of the Executive Intelligence Management Course from the National Institute for Security Studies, led by its Director of Studies, Hyginus Ngele.
“Another dimension that is not given attention is the discovery, recently, that organised foreign fraud syndicates are establishing cells in Nigerian cities and recruiting young Nigerians into serious organized cybercrimes, including cryptocurrency fraud,” Olukoyede said.
He further disclosed that recent EFCC intelligence suggests that foreign fraudsters are also illegally importing arms into Nigeria using cryptocurrency as a means of payment.
“In the special operations we carried out in Lagos recently, we arrested 194 foreigners in the heart of Victoria Island. Among them were Chinese, Filipinos, Eastern Europeans, Tunisians, and others, all in a single building. Some lacked valid visas, and most of their financial activities were conducted through cryptocurrency,” he revealed.
Additionally, Olukoyede noted that some of the arrested foreigners were ex-convicts in their home countries who had escaped prosecution and sought refuge in Nigeria and other African nations.
Olukoyede questioned how bandits and insurgents have sustained their activities over the years, highlighting the uncontrolled flow of small arms and light weapons across Nigerian borders.
He also pointed out the role of non-state actors in the illegal exploitation of minerals, which compounds security threats in the country.
He called for coordinated national and continental efforts to combat the activities of foreign fraud syndicates and internet criminals, stressing the link between money laundering and national security threats.
“All security, intelligence, and law enforcement organizations in Nigeria and Africa must close ranks in dealing with this challenge,” he said.
He also expressed concern that for nearly two decades, Nigeria has been plagued by insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, and farmer-herder clashes, blaming part of the crisis on non-state actors.
“At the level of the EFCC, we have always been suspicious of the activities of non-state actors in areas facing security challenges. In the North-East, for instance, the activities of local and international NGOs have come under scrutiny. This led to their mandatory registration with SCUML (Special Control Unit Against Money Laundering) and a directive to notify the EFCC on cash movements within the region,” he added.
Speaking earlier, NISS Commandant, Joseph Odama, represented by Hyginus Ngele, commended Olukoyede’s leadership, praising the EFCC’s achievements in combating corruption, money laundering, and financial crimes.
He further noted that the EFCC has played a critical role in exposing the networks through which some NGOs and other entities fund hostile non-state actors, fueling instability in Nigeria and Africa.
