The International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol)
has arrested 11 suspected “high-level members of several terrorist groups” in
Nigeria.
The suspected insurgents were among the 83 persons arrested
in six African countries by the international police and AFRIPOL in an
operation codenamed ‘Operation Catalyst’.
The six African countries are Angola, Cameroon, Kenya,
Namibia, Nigeria, and South Sudan.
In a statement, Interpol said the two-month operation
targeted “terrorism financing and the illegal activity supporting it”, adding
that over 15,000 persons of interest and entities were combed.
The Interpol said the operation uncovered $260 million in
both fiat and virtual currencies “potentially linked to terrorism-related
activities” adding that over $600,000 has been seized.
“Of the 83 arrests, 21 were for terrorism-related crimes, 28
were for financial fraud and money laundering, 16 were linked to cyber-enabled
scams and a further 18 were related to the illicit use of virtual assets,” the
statement reads.
“In one significant case from Angola, 25 individuals of
multiple nationalities were detained following investigations into informal
value transfer systems that were identified as connected to potential terrorist
financing and money laundering.
“The operation included the inspection of 30 commercial
establishments, where police seized approximately USD 588,000, 100 mobile
phones and 40 computers. Sixty bank accounts were also frozen.
“In Kenya, a suspected money laundering operation using a
virtual asset service provider was identified as having potential links to
terrorism financing.
“The scheme, worth approximately USD 430,000, involved 12
people, two of whom have so far been arrested. In a separate case in Kenya, two
individuals were arrested for the online recruitment of young people from East
and North Africa into terrorist groups.
“The funds used for the recruitment and radicalization were
traced through a cryptocurrency trading platform, back to individuals in
Tanzania.
“In Nigeria, the operation led to the arrest of 11 suspected
terrorists, including high-level members of several terrorist groups.
“One notable transnational case involved a massive
cryptocurrency-based Ponzi scheme, which claimed to be a legitimate online
trading platform, affected at least 17 countries around the world, including
Cameroon, Kenya, and Nigeria.
“The scheme accumulated more than 100,000 victims around the
world, with an estimated loss to victims of USD 562 million.
“The investigations related to Operation Catalyst found that
several large-valued wallets were potentially linked to terrorism financing
activities. The case is still ongoing, with investigations currently in
progress.”
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com