The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Center (NPF-NCCC) has arrested three suspects in connection with a romance scam and sextortion case involving a Croatian national.
The suspects, identified as Abodunrin Rasheed, Abodunrin Tunde, and Abodunrin Rokeeb, were apprehended after the victim reported the incident through the NPF-NCCC E-Reporting portal, and intelligence gathered by the Center led to their capture.
According to a statement released on Thursday by the Force Spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, the suspects met the Croatian national on a dating app, where they posed as a woman.
“Their continuous chats progressed to Instagram and WhatsApp, leading to an intimate relationship. However, the Croatian was deceived into sending nude pictures of himself through the dating app,” Adejobi explained.
Once they received the explicit images, the suspects reportedly conspired to extort the victim by threatening to send the pictures to his family and friends if he did not pay a ransom. The victim’s ordeal did not end there as the suspects continued to put pressure on him, leveraging the personal and compromising material they had obtained.
The investigation, which followed a report through the NPF-NCCC portal, led to the recovery of several items linked to the crime.
“The operatives of the NPF-NCCC conducted a due investigation, following the obtained information from the report, which led to the apprehension of the suspects and the recovery of the following exhibits related to the crime. The recovered exhibits include six iPhones, one Tecno phone, one Samsung phone, and a Lexus car,” said Adejobi.
Further investigations revealed that the suspects had been involved in similar cybercriminal activities before.
“The proceeds of these crimes were primarily received through gift cards like the iTunes gift cards, Steam gift cards, etc. The suspects will be charged in court upon completion of the investigations,” the police statement added.
Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has warned the public to be vigilant about suspicious online activities and remain cautious of scammers and other cybercriminals.
“The Nigeria Police Force will not relent in its fight against all sorts of crime and criminality,” Egbetokun said, emphasizing the police force’s dedication to cracking down on cybercrime.
He reassured Nigerians of the police’s commitment to maintaining national security and protecting citizens from such criminal activities.
“The IGP further reiterates the commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to dominating Nigerian cyberspace and taking strict action against individuals or groups attempting to compromise national peace and security,” the statement concluded.