South Africa extradites six Nigerian nationals to the United States over allegations that they defrauded more than 100 women through online romance scams, with losses estimated at more than R100 million.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) announced the extradition on Friday, September 11, saying the six men are alleged to have links to the Black Axe network and are wanted in the United States on accusations of wire fraud and money laundering.
The men were arrested in South Africa in 2021 during a major operation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks. Their arrest followed an investigation into an alleged network that targeted women in the United States through online relationships before defrauding them of large sums of money.
According to South African authorities, more than 100 women were allegedly targeted in the romance scams, with the total financial losses exceeding R100 million.
The extradition was coordinated by INTERPOL South Africa. The six suspects were transferred from a correctional facility in Cape Town to Cape Town International Airport, where they were due to be handed over to officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Secret Service.
SAPS said US law enforcement officials arrived in South Africa on Friday morning for the formal handover, which was expected to take place later in the afternoon.
The Hawks said the case demonstrated the growing cooperation between law enforcement agencies across borders as authorities pursue organised criminal activity that operates across multiple jurisdictions.
“This extradition demonstrates the continued cooperation between South African law enforcement agencies and international law enforcement partners in disrupting transnational organised crime and ensuring that suspects wanted in other jurisdictions face due legal process,” Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale said.
The case also comes against the backdrop of increased international cooperation over online fraud and other forms of cyber-enabled crime involving Nigerian nationals.
In August, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission extradited two Nigerians, Mudashiru Afeez Olawale and Adebola Festus, to the United States in a separate case involving allegations of online exploitation and sextortion targeting two teenage boys. US authorities alleged that FBI investigations connected the two men to separate sextortion schemes involving male minors. The two victims later died by suicide.
The cases are separate, and the allegations against the six men extradited from South Africa have not been proven in court. They will now face the US legal process, where prosecutors will be required to establish the allegations against them.
The extradition marks another example of how investigations into online fraud can extend well beyond the country where suspects are arrested, with law enforcement agencies relying on international cooperation to locate suspects, secure their transfer and bring cases before the appropriate courts.
