By Damilola Adeleke

The Nigeria Police Force has uncovered a major cybercrime case involving the theft of N1,097,700,300 from the Enugu State Government by a suspected hacker, Onuma Osita.

Speaking in Abuja during a press briefing, Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, detailed the arrest of Osita by the Nigeria Police Force-National Cybercrime Centre (NPF-NCCC). The stolen funds, approximately $754,977, have been recovered and returned to the state’s coffers.“

The suspect was arrested, and N1,097,700,300 was successfully recovered and returned to the Enugu State Government,” Adejobi said.Further investigations revealed that the suspect’s activities were linked to procurement fraud. Additional assets recovered include 14 land documents, 685 devices (including 467 phones, 137 laptops, and 28 desktops), and other tools such as routers and drones.

The police also apprehended another suspect, Douglass Victor, connected to a cybercrime syndicate specializing in identity theft, business email compromise (BEC), and money laundering. This syndicate, allegedly led by Diepreye Samuel, operates internationally using sophisticated techniques.

Adejobi explained: “The syndicate targeted companies and individuals, compromising email communications to divert funds. Thousands of compromised email credentials were recovered from the suspect’s Skype account.”In 2024 alone, 751 suspects were arrested for cybercrime, with 14 convictions secured. The NPF recovered over N7.9 billion, $115,237.91, 26 vehicles, and 16 houses as proceeds of crime during this period.

The Force reassured the public of its commitment to combating cybercrime and urged vigilance against fraudulent activities.