South African police are set to hand over six Nigerians wanted in the United States over alleged online romance scams to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
They are to be handed over today.
The suspects, who were arrested in 2021, are accused of defrauding more than 100 women in the US of over 100 million rand (about $6 million), according to South African authorities.
The suspects are believed to be members of Black Axe, a Nigerian criminal network that authorities have linked to internet fra.ud, human trafficking and other serious crimes.
South Africa’s elite Hawks police unit said some of the alleged victims were pensioners and businesspeople who were targeted through online relationships before being defra.uded of their money.
Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale said in a statement that the six suspects would be transported from a correctional facility in Cape Town to the airport, where they would be handed over to FBI and US Secret Service officials.
Mogale said the suspects would face wire fra.ud and money-laundering charges upon their arrival in the US.
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