Cybercrime: Police nab six, shutdown Abuja ‘Yahoo Academy’

A highly sophisticated cybercrime syndicate running a cybercrime recruitment and mentorship hub in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, has been found and dismantled by the National Cybercrime Centre unit of the Nigeria Police Force.

Police interrogation of Bernard Joseph, 27, Emmanuel Joseph, 22, Obasi Ikechukwu, 19, Anijiofor Tobechuckwu, 26, Andrew Moses, 19, and Israel Ezekiel, 19, revealed their involvement in various forms of cybercrime, including identity theft, hacking and trading of hacked Facebook accounts, romance scam, computer-related forgery, and other computer-related fraud, according to The PUNCH.

On Wednesday, the Force Headquarters announced the news, saying that the investigation and operation were launched because of multiple intelligence reports that pointed to the syndicate’s extensive involvement in a wide variety of cybercrimes like Business Email Compromise, Romance Scams, and High Yield Investment Programme Fraud.

While reiterating the Force’s commitment to combating crime on all fronts regardless of its dynamics, acting Inspector General Olukayode Egbetokun has instructed the Director, NPF-NCCC, Uche Ifeanyi, to spare no effort in assuring the protection of individuals and businesses in the digital sphere.

In a statement, Force spokesperson Olumuyiwa Adejobi said, “Upon receiving the intelligence, a team of Cybercrime Forensic Experts and Investigators were detailed on the case, painstaking effort expended in clinically investigating the case which led to the arrest of six (6) suspects at their hideout in the Dantata estate area of the FCT and the recovery of several digital gadgets and effects used in perpetrating their criminal enterprise on the 13th of September, 2018.

The suspects, identified as Bernard Joseph, 27, Emmanuel Joseph, 22, Obasi Ikechukwu, 19, Anijiofor Tobechuckwu, 26, Andrew Moses, 19, and Israel Ezekiel, 19, all pleaded guilty to various charges of cybercrime, including identity theft, hacking and trading of hacked Facebook accounts, romance scam, computer-related forgery, and other computer-related fraud, all of which are illegal under the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention etc.