Authorities in Ghana and Nigeria arrested 28 people in an enforcement action targeting West African fraud networks linked to cryptocurrency investment scams, according to a U.S. Department of Justice statement cited by CoinDesk.
Joint operation targets West African scam networks
The UK National Crime Agency (NCA) said the operation also uncovered 117 trafficking victims in Ghana who are awaiting repatriation to Nigeria. Private-sector partners identified more than $11 million in funds that could be frozen.
The DOJ said the operation was hosted by the NCA and brought together technology companies and law enforcement agencies to disrupt scam networks targeting citizens in the United States, the United Kingdom and other countries. It described the effort as the first joint operation of its kind focused on West Africa.
Crypto firms and analytics companies took part
The DOJ said cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance, along with blockchain analytics firms Chainalysis, Elliptic and TRM Labs, participated in the operation.
Coinbase said it helped trace illicit funds, supported asset freezes and provided intelligence to investigators. The company also said it identified more than 65 active scam victims and prevented more than $415,000 in potential losses.
TRM Labs said it exposed a large peer-to-peer money laundering network.
Arrests made in Ghana and Nigeria
In the Sasaabi area of Ghana, authorities arrested 19 people and seized 303 electronic devices. Another 9 people were arrested in Nigeria.
Meta said it removed more than 3.7 million Facebook and Instagram accounts, pages and groups, most of which targeted people in the United States and the United Kingdom through impersonation.
Law enforcement agencies also obtained leads on more than 30 suspected scam centers.