News
US Nabs Anyanwu, Alleged Nigerian Hacker behind $1m Airplane Scam
Houston police officers and FBI agents have arrested 36-year-old Cletus N. Anyanwu for allegedly masterminding an audacious cyber scam in 2018 that resulted in hackers stealing nearly $1 million from a company in New Zealand that intended to purchase an airplane from an Australian company.
While it may seem amusing that a company paid out nearly a million dollars to scammers instead of to the original recipient, the truth is that today’s scams are so foolproof and sophisticated that even the world’s largest corporations fail to spot large-scale frauds that ultimately result in huge financial losses.
According to Texas Police that announced the arrest this week, Anyanwu masterminded the financial side of an elaborate cyber scam in 2018 that involved scammers infiltrating the email accounts of a company in New Zealand that was to purchase an airplane and an Australian company that was selling it.
The cyber crime gang led by Anyanwu interfered with the business emails between the New Zealand-based company and the Australian company and substituted the bank routing information on the deal by replacing the account details of the Australian company with details of bank accounts that were set up as part of the scam.
This way, the scammers were able to redirect two bank transactions for $15,000 and $913,000 to accounts in Houston.
The high-value theft led to two and a half years of investigations that culminated in the arrest of Anyanwu.
Texas Police claims that Anyanwu himself laundered as much as $300,000 of the stolen money himself.
“Cyber fraud is among the fastest-growing crimes in the world. Small businesses can be crushed, a government can be held hostage, or a corporation brought to a standstill all by hacking and fraud. We are dedicated to helping victims by bringing cyber terrorists and thieves to justice,” said Kim Ogg, Harris County district attorney.
“We’re trying to stop all kinds of computer and email scams, including business scams like this. This company lost a million dollars, and that money is just gone,” said prosecuting Attorney Keith Houston.
This is not the first time that a large corporation with sizable funds has been fleeced by scammers employing business email compromise tactics.
In 2017, employees at India’s only government-owned airline company Air India fell for a phishing scam orchestrated by Nigerian hackers who posed as employees of Pratt & Whitney and duped the latter into transferring $300,000 (£230,905) to a bank account located in Nigeria.
In September 2017, a scammer also conned MacEwan University in Canada out of 11.8 million CAD after he convinced employees to change payment details for a vendor using email communications.
After the phishing attack was discovered, the university said that “controls around the process of changing vendor banking information were inadequate, and that a number of opportunities to identify the fraud were missed.”
“In late September 2019, an employee of Nikkei America, Inc. (New York City, United States) (“Nikkei America”), a subsidiary of Nikkei Inc. (“Nikkei”), had transferred approximately 29 million USD (approximately 3.2 billion Japanese Yen) of Nikkei America funds based on fraudulent instructions by a malicious third party who purported to be a management executive of Nikkei.
In December last year, a Lithuanian national was sentenced to five years in prison for stealing $121 Million (£92 million) from Google and Facebook between 2013 and 2015 by impersonating a vendor company in emails.
Rimasauskas impersonated a vendor company named Quanta Computer and demanded payments for goods and services from Google and Facebook employees.
Once he received the said payments, he transferred the money to a number of banks located in countries like Latvia, Cyprus, Slovakia, Lithuania, Hungary, and Hong Kong.
This year’s Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership lecture will focus on Governance, Standardization and cybersecurity in artificial intelligence era.
The lecture which will herald Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Awards (ABoICT Lecture 2025) hold on May 24, 2025 at Four Points by Sheraton and will be delivered by Prof. Adewale Obadare, Chief Visionary Officer, Digital Encode – Cybersecurity and GRC Expert.
The sixteenth edition of the award ceremony according Ken Nwogbo, editor-in-chief of Nigeria CommunicationsWeek the organizers of the event, “is a special edition to recognise and celebrate organizations and individuals in the ICT industry that have contributed to the growth of the sector.
“Most of these organizations and individuals have consistently being voted by our readers as leaders in their areas of operations and we have decided to reward them in this special edition, tag: ‘ICT Growth Edition 2025’ he said,”.
He added that, an AI governance framework outlines policies, principles, and practices to guide the ethical and responsible development and deployment of AI technologies, ensuring transparency, accountability, and fairness.
“In the AI era, cybersecurity faces both new threats and opportunities, as AI’s capabilities are used by both defenders and attackers to launch sophisticated attacks and defenses.
“This requires a proactive approach, including AI-powered security tools, robust data security, and ethical AI development, emphasizing real-time monitoring, threat intelligence, and collaboration among cybersecurity professionals and AI researchers.
“Artificial intelligence transforms cybersecurity by automating responses to risks, detecting unusual activity, and even foreseeing possible dangers before they occur.
“While AI has various perks, such as better efficiency and faster risk identification, it also has challenges. Without proper oversight, these systems can be misused or make errors. Strong governance and ethical frameworks ensure AI technologies are used responsibly and effectively.,” he said.
The Africa’s Beacon of ICT Merit and Leadership Distinguished (ABoICT Lecture 2024) is designed to explore efforts to put Nigeria on the global Information and Communications Technologies map.
The lecture series however is reserved for distinguished achievers in the ICT sector.
Past lecturers included Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, then executive vice chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC); Uche Orji, managing director/chief executive officer, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA); Biodu Omoniyi, Managing Director/CEO, VDT Communications; Ayotunde Coker, Managing Director, Rack Centre Limited; Peter Adedayo Arogundade, managing director and chief executive officer, Sidmach Technologies Nigeria Limited; Dr. Oluseyi Akindeinde, founder, Hyperspace & NeuraL AI and John Obaro, CEO and founder of Systemspecs; Prof. Isa Pantanmi, minister of Communications and Digital Economy; among others.
Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and president of Dangote Refinery, has insisted that the ‘cabal’ in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector is still fighting against the success of his 650,000 barrels per day plant.
Aliko Dangote
Dangote disclosed this, according to Semafor, a global news platform, at an investor forum in Lagos at the weekend.
He said, “For a very, very long time, those that have made a lot of money from government-subsidised oil imports into Nigeria were the ones trying to sabotage the $20 billion worth of refinery situated in Lekki, Lagos.”
He further stressed that “those groups have funded resistance to the Bola Tinubu government’s removal of petrol subsidies and are opposed to the refinery operating easily in the country.”
However, Dangote was confident that the battle between him and the groups would be won, priding himself on being a long-time fighter.
“We’re fighting, and the fight is not yet finished. But I have been fighting all my life, and I am ready and 100 percent sure I will win at the end of the day,” he was quoted.
Recall that Dangote Refinery kicked off the sale of petrol in September 2024, which had led to a significant drop in fuel imports into Nigeria.
In May 2023, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the removal of the fuel subsidy during his inauguration speech.
Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN) has welcomed the decision of the Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal (CCT) upholding the $220 million fine imposed on Meta Platforms Inc. by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
In a statement signed by its President, Mal. Kabiru A. Yusuf, and General Secretary, Mrs. Angela Emuwa, NPAN described the ruling as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s efforts to enforce digital accountability and protect the rights of its citizens.
“The decision affirms the importance of compelling global digital platforms to adhere to Nigeria’s laws and respect the rights of users,” the association said.
NPAN noted that the fine, resulting from a 30-month investigation spanning 2021 to 2023, was imposed due to Meta’s alleged unauthorized data sharing and discriminatory practices affecting Nigerian users.
The association also emphasized that Nigeria’s regulatory action aligns with global trends, citing similar penalties imposed on Meta in Europe, as well as actions against other tech giants such as Amazon, TikTok, Google, and Apple.
As an advocate for media freedom and fair digital practices, NPAN reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding intellectual property and ensuring fair remuneration for publishers in the evolving digital landscape.
It further urged sustained collaboration among government agencies, civil society, and industry players to strengthen Nigeria’s digital regulatory environment.
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