EFCC returns money recovered from Nigerian romance fraudster to Spanish authorities

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) returned on Friday €5,100 (euros) in recovered fraud proceeds to the Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, Juan Sell.

A statement by EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, said on Friday that the commission recovered the money in collaboration with the Spanish from a Nigerian who swindled a Spanish, Heinz Burchard Einhaus Uchtmann, in a romance scam. The commission did not give the name of the Nigerian fraudster or any more details about the case.

At the handover ceremony at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja on Friday, EFCC chairperson, Ola Olukoyede, said the recovery underscores the importance of cross-border cooperation in combating the increasingly global nature of financial crimes.

Romance fraud, which preys on individuals through emotional manipulation, has been a growing concern, with victims often sending large sums of money to perpetrators they believe are romantically interested in them.

Mr Olukoyede said the borderless nature of cybercrime creates the need for countries to work together to combat these crimes.

He said EFCC is dedicated to cleaning up Nigeria’s financial ecosystem to make it inhospitable for fraudsters.

“On our path, we are resolute to ensure that Nigeria is not made a safe haven for financial criminals and corrupt people,” he added.

Spanish Ambassador Sell praised the strong ties between Spanish and Nigerian law enforcement agencies.

He commended the EFCC’s efforts and expressed the Spanish government’s commitment to further strengthening their collaboration.

“Romance scams are particularly heinous in the sense that they thrive on the goodwill and good heart of the victims,” he said.

“International crimes call very clearly for stronger collaboration between agencies and between countries. I am a witness that this is happening between Nigeria and Spain and specifically between the EFCC and Spanish Police.”

He also noted the cruelty of romance such scams, which exploit victims’ trust and emotions. “These crimes are heinous because they take advantage of the good intentions of individuals. I’m glad to see justice being served today.”

Loss of money is only one of the harmful impacts of romance scams on victims. Many victims also suffer deep emotional distress. In some instances, it pushes victims into committing suicide. A case in point is one in which a US court recently sentenced two Nigerian brothers to 17 and half years in jail for blackmailing a minor to the point of committing suicide in an elaborate sextortion scam.

According to reports, victims of romance scams worldwide lose billions of dollars each year, making it one of the most prevalent forms of internet fraud.

Serial fraud, serial handovers

This is the latest in a series of similar handovers of recovered proceeds of cybercrimes to the authorities of the foreign victim’s country.

Earlier this month, EFCC handed over $180,300 and 53 vehicles recovered from fraudsters who swindled Canadian victims to the Canadian authorities.

A representative of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Nasser Salihou, received the assets at a handover ceremony held at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja.

In May, the EFCC also handed over $22,000 to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), funds that had been recovered from a Nigerian internet fraudster convicted of identity theft and impersonation.

The criminal, Hakeem Olanrewaju, had been sentenced to two years in prison, with the funds ordered to be returned to his American victim.

Similarly, in April 2021, the EFCC returned ¥370,000 to a Japanese fraud victim through the Japanese Embassy in Abuja, after a Nigerian fraudster defrauded Hatsumi Ozeki.

On Friday, Mr Olukoyede expressed hope that continued cooperation with Spain and other international partners would lead to more successful recoveries and prosecutions in the future. “We are committed to ensuring that financial criminals, regardless of where they operate, are brought to justice,” he said.

Mr Sell echoed this sentiment, calling for even deeper ties between the EFCC and its foreign counterparts.

“Beyond the operational collaboration you have with our police, we will also look at other avenues of collaboration in training and exchange of information. We are more than willing and more than ready to increase that cooperation between the EFCC and its sister institutions in Spain,” he said.