Six Nigerian nationals accused of being part of an organized criminal network that allegedly defrauded American women of more than $6 million through online romance scams are set to be extradited to the United States.
The suspects, who were arrested in Cape Town, South Africa, in 2021, are expected to be handed over to officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Friday before being transported to the U.S. to face charges of wire fraud and money laundering.
South African police said the six men are allegedly linked to the Black Axe criminal network, which has been identified by Interpol as one of the groups involved in a significant portion of cyber-enabled financial fraud around the world.
The alleged crimes reportedly included romance scams, cryptocurrency fraud and investment scams.
According to South African authorities, the suspects allegedly targeted more than 100 women across the United States, using online romantic relationships to defraud their victims of more than $6 million.
Some of the alleged victims were pensioners and business owners who were reportedly drawn into sophisticated online relationships before being financially exploited.
“Through the coordination of Interpol South Africa, the six will today be transported from a correctional facility in Cape Town to Cape Town International Airport, where they will be handed over to officials from the FBI and the United States Secret Service, who arrived in South Africa this morning,” said police spokesperson Katlego Mogale.
Interpol Crackdown on West African Cybercrime
The extradition comes amid increased international efforts to combat organized crime and cyber-enabled financial fraud linked to West African criminal networks.
A recent Interpol operation targeting organized crime groups in West Africa resulted in the arrest of 58 people and the identification of 263 suspects allegedly connected to various criminal networks involved in similar offenses, the international police organization said last month.
The operation focused on disrupting money-laundering networks, identifying high-value criminal targets, recovering assets and supporting arrests and prosecutions.
South Africa Romance Scam Investigation
In South Africa, authorities also raided seven locations in Johannesburg as part of an investigation into a syndicate accused of operating romance and investment scams targeting retirees in English-speaking countries.
During the operation, South African police arrested 39 people, seized assets worth $2.67 million and froze more than 250 bank accounts, according to Interpol.
The latest extradition highlights the growing international cooperation between law-enforcement agencies in tackling online romance scams, money laundering and other forms of cyber-enabled financial crime.
