The Nigeria Police Force, through its National Cybercrime Centre (NPF–NCCC), has uncovered and dismantled a sophisticated cyber-enabled fraud syndicate responsible for the illegal diversion of a telecommunications company’s airtime and data resources valued at over ₦7.7 billion.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday from the Force Headquarters in Abuja.
According to the police, the breakthrough followed a petition submitted by a Nigerian telecommunications company over suspicious and unauthorised activities detected within its billing and payment infrastructure.
“Investigations revealed that internal staff login credentials had been compromised, granting threat actors unlawful access to the company’s core systems, which enabled the large-scale diversion of airtime and data resources,” Hundeyin said.
He explained that after weeks of intelligence-driven planning, coordinated enforcement operations were carried out in October 2025 across Kano and Katsina States, with a follow-up arrest later effected in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The operations led to the arrest of six suspects identified as Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad.
Items recovered during the arrests include two residential houses in Kano, two mini-plazas, GSM and laptop retail outlets containing over 400 laptops, more than 1,000 mobile phones, and a Toyota RAV4 vehicle, all believed to be proceeds of the crime. The police also recovered substantial sums of money traced to the suspects’ bank accounts.
Hundeyin added that the suspects would be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigations.
Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokunhas commended officers of the NPF–NCCC for their professionalism and diligence in cracking the case.
“The IGP reiterates the unwavering resolve of the Nigeria Police Force to safeguard Nigeria’s digital and financial ecosystems, dismantle cyber-criminal networks, and ensure that offenders are held accountable regardless of their position or affiliation,” the statement said.
