EFCC Witness Tells Court How Audu Allegedly Ran Crypto-Romance Scam Linked To 792 Arrests

A prosecution witness on Wednesday detailed before a Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja how Friday Audu, alleged to be the Nigerian mastermind behind a massive international cryptocurrency investment and romance scam, coordinated activities that led to the arrest of 792 suspects in December 2024.

The witness, Rasheeda Chindaya, an operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), testified before Justice Rahman Oshodi as the trial of Audu continued.

Audu is standing trial alongside Genting International Ltd on an amended eight-count charge bordering on forgery, impersonation, possession of fraudulent documents, and computer-related fraud.

The December 2024 operation, carried out across multiple locations, resulted in the arrest of 792 suspects—193 foreigners and 599 Nigerians.

The EFCC said the suspects were linked to a sophisticated cybercrime syndicate involved in cryptocurrency investment fraud, money laundering, computer-related fraud, and romance scams.

Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Bilikisu Buhari, Chindaya narrated the outcome of investigations conducted by the Commission.

She told the court that Genting International Ltd was initially incorporated with Nasiru Barau and Yakubu as directors, holding share capital of N10 million and N18 million respectively.

Both directors were later removed in 2025 and replaced by one Ifeanyi, with N12 million in shares, and one Matthew, who held N18 million.

Chindaya said investigations revealed that Genting International Ltd was presented as a gaming company.

However, a review of its bank accounts showed that the Bank Verification Number (BVN) linked to the accounts belonged to Friday Audu.

According to her, the BVN was connected to about 10 corporate accounts involving several vendors.

Further investigations uncovered financial links between Genting International Ltd and other companies, including YENGJIEPENG, BT8 Housing Nigeria Limited, and BNN Construction Limited.

She said letters of investigation were sent to several banks, which confirmed that Genting operated accounts with balances running into billions of naira, including a peak balance of about N34 billion at one point.

Some inflows, she added, were traced to Bureau De Change operators and entities such as Truly Reality and Garuba.

Chindaya told the court that Audu was the sole signatory to Genting International Ltd’s bank accounts. Documents obtained from the bank included a request dated August for an increase in the company’s bank limit and a board resolution appointing Audu as the sole signatory.

She said funds were routinely transferred from Genting’s accounts to BDC operators for conversion into USDT cryptocurrency through digital wallets.

One such wallet, created in May 2024, had its last transaction in October 2024 and reportedly received about N97 million, later traced to Genting’s Union Bank account.

According to the witness, Audu personally received about N74 million, which was paid into his personal account and later traced to his FCMB account.

The funds were allegedly used to furnish his office and cover expenses such as furniture purchases and diesel.

She also testified about another gaming company, Anhongs, whose account was opened in August, noting that Audu was also the sole signatory and that the same Genting email address was used for its operations.

Chindaya said that of the 792 suspects arrested, 193 were foreigners, including 145 Chinese nationals, about 40 Filipinos, a Tunisian, and others, while the remaining suspects were Nigerians, mostly youths aged 27 and above.

She explained that Nigerians were recruited through social media advertisements, trained with prepared scripts, and assigned roles such as scammers, marketers, and supervisors.

Victims were allegedly lured through dating apps, particularly Tinder, persuaded to make payments on fake websites, and subsequently blocked.

Nigerian recruits earned between N200,000 and N800,000 monthly, while foreigners were paid between 500 dollars and 1,000 dollars.

Some recruits who attempted to withdraw were allegedly threatened with the withholding of salaries.

She further told the court that several properties linked to Genting were discovered across Lagos, including offices in Victoria Island, Lekki, Bishop Oluwole Street, and a six-unit building on Oniru Island allegedly paid for in two tranches.

Chindaya identified the alleged kingpins as Ken, Sentu and Mr Sim, currently at large and Friday Audu.

She added that investigators uncovered 384 pre-registered SIM cards traced to individuals in Northern Nigeria who denied knowledge of the registrations.

Describing the case as unprecedented, she said the EFCC mobilised officers from multiple zonal offices, converting some facilities into holding cells to accommodate suspects.

Justice Oshodi adjourned the matter until February 24 and 26, 2026, for continuation of trial.