Rasheeda Chindaya, an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has given evidence against Friday Audu, described as the mastermind of an online fraud ring said to involve roughly 792 operatives.
Audu is being prosecuted alongside Genting International Co. Limited on an amended eight-count charge that includes allegations of forgery, impersonation, possession of fraudulent documents and offences relating to cyber fraud.
Chindaya testified on Wednesday before the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja.
The testimony stems from a major EFCC raid in December 2024, when the commission carried out what it described as its largest one-day crackdown on romance and cryptocurrency fraud networks, arresting 792 suspects in Lagos.
The arrests took place inside a seven-storey building located in Victoria Island.
Among those detained were 114 Chinese nationals, 40 Filipinos, two individuals from Khazakhstan, one Pakistani and one Indonesian.
According to the commission, the foreign suspects were using the facility to “train Nigerians on how to initiate romance and investment scams”.
At the time, the EFCC said the syndicate funded its activities through a company known as Genting International Co. Limited (GICL).
In July 2025, a federal high court in Lagos ordered the permanent forfeiture of digital assets valued at $222,729 linked to the group.
Led in evidence by prosecutor Bilikisu Buhari, Chindaya narrated the findings from the EFCC’s investigation into the syndicate’s operations.
She told the court that Genting International was originally registered with two directors — Nasiru Barau and Yakubu — who held share capital of ₦10 million and ₦18 million respectively.
According to her, the directorship changed in 2025, when the two were replaced with individuals identified as Ifeanyi (₦12 million in shares) and Matthew (₦18 million).
Buhari explained that the company presented itself publicly as a gaming outfit, but investigations showed that the bank verification number (BVN) tied to its accounts belonged to Audu.
She added that the same BVN linked Audu to roughly 10 corporate bank accounts used by various vendors.
Chindaya further testified that Genting operated multiple accounts containing funds totaling billions of naira — at one point holding around ₦34 billion.
Some of the inflows, she said, were traced to bureau de change (BDC) operators and organisations including Truly Reality and Garuba.
The court also heard that Audu acted as the sole signatory to Genting’s accounts.
Documents obtained from the bank, she said, contained a request increasing the firm’s cash transaction limit, along with a board resolution naming Audu as the only authorised signatory.
Funds were then regularly wired from Genting’s accounts to BDC operators for conversion “into the United States’ dollar cryptocurrency through digital wallets”.
The matter was adjourned to February 24 and 26, 2026, for continuation of trial.