The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) – National Cybercrime Centre has successfully dismantled a sophisticated cyber-enabled fraud syndicate responsible for illegally diverting airtime and data from a major telecommunications company, causing losses estimated at ₦7.7 billion.
The breakthrough came after the telecom company reported suspicious activity within its billing and payment systems, prompting a detailed investigation. Officers discovered that internal staff login credentials had been compromised, allowing the criminals unlawful access to core systems.
Following weeks of planning, coordinated raids in October 2025 in Kano, Katsina, and the Federal Capital Territory led to the arrest of six suspects: Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad.
Recovered assets include:
- Two residential houses in Kano
- Two mini-plazas
- GSM and laptop retail outlets with over 400 laptops
- Over 1,000 mobile phones
- A Toyota RAV4 vehicle
- Large sums of money traced to the suspects’ accounts
The suspects are set to be charged to court upon completion of investigations.
Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, praised the officers for their professionalism and reiterated the force’s commitment to safeguard Nigeria’s digital and financial ecosystems and hold cybercriminals accountable, regardless of status.
This operation marks one of the largest cybercrime busts in recent Nigerian history, sending a strong warning to fraudsters across the country.
