Nigeria, U.S. step up joint offensive against romance scams, cybercrime
Nigeria, U.S. step up joint offensive against romance scams, cybercrime
Nigeria and the United States have intensified cooperation against romance scams, sextortion and transnational cybercrime, signaling a stronger joint offensive against digital criminal networks.
The renewed commitment emerged during a visit to Abuja by Michael Gonzales, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the U.S. Embassy said in a statement on Monday.
Gonzales met senior officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
Coinciding with Nigeria’s Cybercrime Awareness Week, the discussions focused on expanding joint investigations and disrupting financially motivated sextortion, romance scams and other cross-border cyber threats.
Gonzales challenged American and Nigerian counterparts to “match the speed of cybercriminals with stronger international cooperation, stressing that digital crime increasingly transcends national boundaries.”
He cited recent extraditions as evidence that coordinated investigations, diplomatic engagement and law enforcement collaboration could deny alleged criminals safe havens across international borders.
“In August, Nigeria extradited two alleged cybercriminals to the United States over separate sextortion cases involving American minors who reportedly died by suicide.
“Since 2022, the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Abuja has collaborated with EFCC on 41 extraditions, including five completed in 2026, compared with four arrests and five extraditions between 2012 and 2021,” the statement said.
The U.S. official commended EFCC, the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Office of the Attorney-General for supporting investigations and extradition proceedings, emphasising accountability as a deterrent.
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Highlighting the devastating consequences of sextortion, Gonzales cited more than 50,000 reports received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2025, averaging 137 daily.
He noted that FBI investigations had identified Nigeria and other West African countries, alongside Southeast Asia, among locations where prominent sextortion networks operated, while Operation Artemis targets networks exploiting American victims.
Beyond sextortion, both countries are strengthening efforts against romance scams, which manipulate personal relationships to defraud victims, sometimes wiping out their life savings and retirement funds.
The statement recalled that the NPF National Cybercrime Centre launched a nationwide online-safety campaign in March, addressing sextortion, romance scams, phishing, identity theft and business email compromise.
Gonzales praised EFCC’s partnership with the FBI, urging stronger intelligence sharing, faster investigations, improved cybercrime reporting and coordinated action against criminal networks, financial infrastructure and their facilitators.
He said the success of bilateral cooperation should ultimately be measured by protected victims, disrupted criminal networks, successful prosecutions and stronger Nigerian institutions, rather than programmes funded.
