Spokesperson for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Wilson Uwujaren, stated that the suspects were detained in the seven-story Daba Building in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital, including 148 Chinese and 40 Filipinos.
Lagos: The Nigerian anti-corruption agency reported that 792 suspects were arrested during a raid on a building believed to be a hub for scammers who lure victims with romantic enticements and then coerce them into handing over cash for bogus cryptocurrency investments.
He added that the luxury building housed a call center targeting victims from the Americas and Europe.
Uwujaren told reporters that the staff there would contact people via social media and messaging platforms (including WhatsApp and Instagram), then lure them online or offer seemingly lucrative investment opportunities.
Once the victims were hooked, they were forced to transfer money to fake cryptocurrency schemes and other non-existent projects.
"Nigerian accomplices were recruited by foreign masterminds to fish for victims online, mainly targeting Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and people from several other European countries," Uwujaren said. "Once the Nigerians could gain the potential victims' trust, the foreigners would take over the actual task of deceiving the victims," he said.
Uwujaren mentioned that the commission is collaborating with international partners and investigating potential links with organized crime. He added that agents seized computers, mobile phones, and vehicles during the raid.
