Recently, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) trained the Nigerian cryptocurrency crime investigation team. The agenda of the training was to enhance the Nigerian team’s capacity to deal with crypto-related frauds. More than 50 investigators and officials from Nigeria participated in this.
Tracking the Crypto Fraud
The country of Nigeria is dealing with several cryptocurrency-related crimes. Prior to the joint training with the US government, Nigerian forces saw some success in curbing the crime rate. In fact, the Nigerian authorities were able to put an end to the Ponzi crypto scheme known as Inksnation. They even apprehended Omotade-Sparks Amos Sewanu, the mastermind behind the crypto scheme. Unfortunately, most crypto frauds and crimes are yet to be solved.
The training exercise, with the FBI and the ICHIP (International Computer Hacking & IP Attorney Advisers), was of great help. It highlighted the patterns, trends, and methods in which criminal organizations make use of cryptocurrency.
Nigeria’s Rising Crypto Crimes
The number of crypto-related frauds and crimes is very high in Nigeria. The Nigeria Securities and Exchange Commission discourages the public from engaging in any activity related to cryptocurrency. Even the Central Bank of Nigeria ordered banks to shut accounts of crypto clients.
Despite these measures, Nigerians continue to show interest in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and Dogecoin (DOGE). In fact, the cryptocurrency market is only growing in the country.
But after training with the US Government, Nigerian authorities are positive they can tackle the crypto criminals head-on.
