Nigeria Police Force has arrested two suspects over a N713.9 million fraud linked to a breach involving a third-party banking platform.
The police in a statement signed by Anthony Okon Placid, Force Public Relations Officer Force Headquarters, Abuja said the case followed a complaint by a financial institution which reported unauthorised debits on customers’ accounts, leading to an investigation by the Police Special Fraud Unit (PSFU).
Acting on the complaint, operatives of the PSFU deployed advanced investigative and digital forensic techniques, revealing that fifteen customers’ accounts had been compromised.
The funds were subsequently channelled through a network of accounts in a coordinated laundering scheme.
The operation led to the arrest of two suspects, Oguntoyinbo Olawale and Kazeem Omokayode.
Further investigations established that the suspects conspired with one Linda, a Chinese national currently at large, to use personal identification details, including Bank Verification Number (BVN), National Identification Number (NIN), and other credentials, to open multiple bank accounts across various financial institutions. These accounts were then used to receive, conceal, and launder illicit proceeds.
The suspects in custody are to be arraigned before a court of competent jurisdiction, while efforts are ongoing to apprehend other members of the syndicate still at large.
Olatunji Disu, Inspector-General of Police (IGP), commended officers of the Police Special Fraud Unit for their efforts and reaffirmed the commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to combating financial and cyber-enabled crimes.
