Opeyemi Olamilekan
Abuja – Four persons have been arrested in Nigeria for allegedly blackmailing an unnamed Croatian man with his nude photographs, police said on Thursday.
National police spokesman Muyiwa Adejobi said in a statement that operatives from the National Cybercrime Center (NCC) of the Nigeria Police Force arrested the suspects.
Adejobi said the arrested suspects included Abodunrin Rasheed, Abodunrin Tunde, and Abodunrin Rokeeb. He did not mention the name of the fourth suspect.
The police spokesman said the suspects met the Croatian on a dating app where they pretended to be a woman to extort him.
He said the suspects continued chatting with the victim on Instagram and WhatsApp, where the Croatian, apparently thinking the suspects were a woman, agreed to an intimate relationship.
“The Croatian was deceived into sending nude pictures of himself through the dating app.
“The suspects subsequently conspired and pressured him (the Croatian) to pay ransom or have his pictures sent to his family and friends,” Adejobi said.
He revealed that the suspects were arrested following receipt of a report through the police cybercrime centre’s electronic reporting portal.
“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,” the police spokesman said.
He said further investigations showed that the suspects had previously engaged in similar cybercriminal activities in the past where they allegedly defrauded and extorted numerous victims globally.
“The proceeds of these crimes were primarily received through gift cards like the iTunes gift cards, steam gift cards etc.,” Adejobi said.
“The suspects will be charged in court upon completion of the investigations.”
Six iPhones, two Android mobile phones – Techno and Samsung – and a Lexus car were recovered from the suspects, according to the police spokesman.
The Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has urged Nigerians to be careful about the activities of online fraudsters, he said, adding that the police boss also warned individuals and groups involved in similar cybercriminal activities to desist immediately.
“The Nigeria Police Force will not relent in its fight against all sorts of crime and criminality,” he vowed.