Deportation of 192 Foreign Cybercrime Convicts from Lagos Completed
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has successfully completed the repatriation of all 192 foreign nationals convicted and sentenced in Lagos for cyber-terrorism, internet fraud, and related financial crimes.
The operation, a coordinated effort between the EFCC, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), marks the conclusion of one of Nigeria’s largest transnational cybercrime crackdowns in recent years.
This massive repatriation exercise stemmed from a large-scale sting raid conducted on December 10, 2024, at Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. Acting on actionable intelligence, the EFCC had apprehended 759 suspects, exposing a major foreign-led cybercrime and Ponzi scheme syndicate operating under the guise of a company, Genting International Co. Limited.
Following months of investigation and prosecution, 192 foreign nationals—comprising individuals from China, the Philippines, Tunisia, Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Pakistan, and Kyrgyzstan—were convicted by the Federal High Court in Lagos under the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006. The court mandated their deportation upon completing their prison terms.
The deportation was carried out in coordinated batches between mid-August and mid-October 2025. The large-scale exercise began on August 15, 2025, with the first batch of 42 convicts (Chinese and Filipino nationals). The final batch of 51 convicts, which included 50 Chinese nationals and one Tunisian, was repatriated on October 16, 2025, bringing the total number deported to 192.
The convicts were involved in various cyber fraud activities, including identity theft, online romance scams, Ponzi investment schemes, and digital training for cybercrime operations, activities the EFCC noted posed a serious threat to Nigeria’s national security and financial integrity.
In an official statement, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede hailed the deportation as a “strong statement of Nigeria’s resolve to rid its cyberspace of transnational criminal networks.”
He underscored the significance of the operation as a milestone in protecting Nigeria’s digital and financial ecosystem, pledging that the EFCC would continue to act swiftly on intelligence, prosecute offenders, and recover crime proceeds in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s anti-corruption drive.
Olukoyede also commended the NIS and NCoS for their “seamless cooperation,” which was crucial for the safe custody, prosecution, and eventual repatriation of all the convicts.
