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The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has announced the arrest of nine suspects in Nigeria and 19 in Ghana in a multinational crackdown on online fraud networks accused of targeting American citizens.
The operation, known as Operation Blackout, also led to the seizure of more than 350 electronic devices, the identification of over $11 million in potentially recoverable funds and the discovery of more than 120 people allegedly trafficked and exploited to carry out online scams.
FBI Director Kash Patel disclosed the figures while outlining the agency’s intensified efforts to dismantle international scam networks targeting Americans, particularly elderly and vulnerable individuals.
The FBI also announced that more than 3.7 million accounts, pages and groups linked to scams had been removed from Facebook and Instagram in collaboration with Meta, the technology company that owns the platforms.
The arrests were made during a broader international enforcement campaign known as Joint Disruption Week, involving law enforcement agencies in several countries.
According to the FBI, the nine suspects arrested in Nigeria are expected to face prosecution under Nigerian law, while the 19 suspects arrested in Ghana are being dealt with by the relevant Ghanaian authorities.
The operation forms part of a wider effort to disrupt criminal networks that use online platforms to defraud victims across national borders.
Ghana clarifies role in joint operation
The latest announcement follows a major operation in Ghana earlier in October, when authorities raided suspected cybercrime centres, arrested or detained more than 130 people and seized over 300 electronic devices.
The Ghana Cyber Security Authority, however, disputed suggestions that the FBI independently led the exercise, emphasising that Ghanaian authorities planned, coordinated and executed the operation with support from international partners.
The authority said the operation, also known as Operation Cyber Hunt, involved Ghana’s National Security Council, the Ghana Police Service’s Criminal Investigations Department, the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, the FBI, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Joint Case Team on Cybercrime, the Ghana Immigration Service and the Office of the Attorney-General.
According to the Ghanaian authority, the operation followed intelligence received on August 26 about suspected organised cybercrime activities, including romance scams, allegedly conducted from apartments in parts of the Greater Accra Region.
The exercise reportedly resulted in the arrest of eight suspects and the rescue of 120 people suspected to have been trafficked and exploited for online fraud.
Authorities seized 136 mobile phones, 130 laptops, internet devices, four vehicles and 10 Nigerian passports.
Reports on the operation also indicated that investigators identified 89 suspected fraud victims and nearly $10 million in losses associated with the alleged scams.
Some of those found at the suspected centres were reportedly victims of human trafficking who had been forced to participate in online fraud. Arrangements were expected to be made for the repatriation of affected individuals where appropriate.
FBI reports billions in seizures and potential losses prevented
The FBI said Operation Blackout had contributed to a broader international campaign that had resulted in approximately $17 billion in seizures globally, hundreds of arrests and the rescue of thousands of trafficked workers.
The agency also said its interventions had enabled authorities to warn more than 10,000 Americans before they lost money, helping to prevent an estimated $670 million in potential financial losses.
The figures underscore the scale of online fraud operations that exploit digital platforms and cross-border networks to target victims far beyond the countries where the perpetrators operate.
The FBI described Operation Blackout as a global campaign designed to identify, disrupt and dismantle large-scale scam compounds and the criminal networks behind them.
AI increasingly used in online scams
The FBI also warned that criminal networks were increasingly deploying artificial intelligence to make fraudulent communications, impersonation attempts and other online schemes more convincing.
Such technologies can be used to produce persuasive messages and impersonate trusted individuals or organisations, making it more difficult for potential victims to distinguish legitimate communications from fraudulent ones.
The agency urged continued international cooperation to identify suspects, disrupt their operations and protect vulnerable people from financial exploitation.
Issuing a warning to those behind the schemes, the FBI said: “To the criminals stealing Americans’ hard-earned money: Your borders won’t protect you. Your compounds won’t hide you.”
The operation highlights the growing importance of cooperation among law enforcement agencies, cybersecurity authorities and technology companies in tackling online fraud, human trafficking and other forms of transnational organised crime.
For Nigeria, the arrest of nine suspects and the EFCC’s participation in the wider international effort underscore the role of domestic law enforcement in investigating cybercrime and prosecuting suspected offenders under the country’s laws.
