Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arrested 792 people, including 148 Chinese and 40 Filipino nationals, in a sweeping raid targeting a suspected crypto romance scam hub in Lagos. The raid, conducted on December 10, has unveiled an extensive operation that defrauded victims across North America, Europe, and Mexico through sophisticated online phishing schemes.
A spokesperson for the EFCC revealed that Nigerian accomplices were recruited to lure victims by establishing trust over social media platforms. “Once the Nigerians are able to win the confidence of would-be victims, the foreigners would take over the actual task of defrauding them,” the spokesperson explained. Known as “pig butchering,” this method blends romance scams and fake cryptocurrency investment pitches, exploiting emotional and financial vulnerabilities to pressure victims into transferring funds.
Chinese Organized Crime
The arrested individuals allegedly operated under the command of foreign syndicates, mainly Chinese kingpins who brought advanced infrastructure and funding to the scheme. Cybercrime investigator Ken Gamble, co-founder of IFW Global, stated that Chinese organized crime groups are increasingly shifting their operations to regions with weaker cybersecurity frameworks, such as Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
“Chinese organized crime groups are expanding their operations into countries with weaker cybersecurity enforcement frameworks,” Gamble said, adding that Chinese ringleaders typically aim to employ as many as 1,000 people in such operations. He noted that while the Lagos-based scam hub was relatively smaller, similar operations in Myanmar had employed up to 5,000 workers.
Local recruits are enticed with higher-than-average pay, with Nigerians earning up to $500 per month — nearly ten times the country’s minimum wage — plus performance-based bonuses for successful scams. These lucrative offers make it easier for criminal networks to scale their operations in resource-constrained countries.
EFCC Collaborates Amid Rising Crypto Scam Cases
The EFCC stated that it is working with international partners to assess whether the Lagos-based operation has broader links to global organized crime. The crackdown comes amid rising concerns over “pig butchering” scam cases, which have become increasingly popular among cybercriminals this year.
In an August report, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis highlighted the shift toward quicker, high-impact scam cases like these, noting that they are replacing long-term Ponzi schemes as cybercriminals adapt to evade detection.
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