The Nigeria Police Force, through its National Cybercrime Centre (NPF–NCCC), has dismantled a sophisticated cyber-enabled fraud syndicate involved in the illegal diversion of a telecommunications company’s airtime and data resources, with losses estimated at over ₦7.7 billion.
This was disclosed by Police spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin who posted the development on his verified Facebook page on Wednesday that the suspects linked to the fraud were also arrested.
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The breakthrough followed a petition submitted by a Nigerian telecommunications company, which alerted authorities to “suspicious and unauthorised activities” within its billing and payment infrastructure.
According to police investigations, login credentials belonging to internal staff of the company were compromised, allowing the perpetrators to gain unlawful access to core systems and divert airtime and data for criminal profit.
After weeks of intelligence gathering and operational planning, coordinated enforcement actions were carried out in October 2025 across Kano and Katsina states, with a follow-up arrest in the Federal Capital Territory.
The operations led to the arrest of six suspects identified as Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad.
Police spokespersons said items recovered during the arrests include two residential houses in Kano, two mini-plazas, GSM and laptop retail outlets stocked with over 400 laptops and 1,000 mobile phones, as well as a Toyota RAV4 vehicle.
“Substantial sums of money traced to the suspects’ bank accounts have also been recovered, all believed to be proceeds of the crime,” the police said.
The suspects, according to the force, will be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigations.
Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, PhD, NPM, commended officers of the NPF–NCCC for what he described as their professionalism and diligence.
“The Nigeria Police Force remains unwavering in its resolve to safeguard the nation’s digital and financial ecosystems,” Egbetokun said. “Through the NPF–NCCC, we will continue to dismantle cybercriminal networks and ensure that offenders are held accountable, regardless of their position or affiliation.”
