The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Center (NPF-NCCC) has arrested four suspects in connection with an alleged case of sextortion and romance scam, Okay.ng reports.
In a statement released on Thursday night, Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, identified three of the suspects as Abodunrin Rasheed, Abodunrin Tunde, and Abodunrin Rokeeb. The arrests were made following a report submitted via the NPF-NCCC e-reporting portal and intelligence from the Cybercrime Center.
Investigations revealed that the suspects targeted a Croatian national through a dating app, posing as a woman. The relationship later progressed to Instagram and WhatsApp, where the victim was deceived into sending intimate photos.
The suspects then conspired to extort the Croatian, threatening to release the photos unless a ransom was paid.
Adejobi stated, “However, the Croatian was deceived into sending nude pictures of himself through the dating app. The suspects subsequently conspired and pressured him to pay ransom or have his pictures sent to his family and friends.
“The operatives of the NPF-NCCC conducted a due investigation, following the obtained information from the report, which led to the apprehension of the suspects and the recovery of the following exhibits related to the crime. The recovered exhibits include six iPhones, one Techno phone, one Samsung phone, and a Lexus car.
“Further investigations revealed that the suspects have previously engaged in numerous similar cybercriminal activities, both collectively and individually, defrauding and extorting numerous victims globally. The proceeds of these crimes were primarily received through gift cards like the iTunes gift cards, steam gift cards etc. The suspects will be charged in court upon completion of the investigations.”
