Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, handed over €5100 (Five Thousand, One Hundred Euros) proceeds of an online romance scam to the Spanish Ambassador to Nigeria, His Excellency, Juan Ignacio Sell.
The EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, handed over the money on Friday on behalf of the Nigerian government.
The recovery, which was for Spanish citizen Heinz Burchard Einhaus Uchtmann, was made possible through collaboration between the EFCC and Spanish law enforcement.
The agency, however, did not disclose the identity of the fraudster from whom the money was recovered.
While handing over the deed of release, the EFCC boss expressed appreciation to the Spanish counterpart for its support to Nigeria over the years, noting that the asset recovery and handover lent evidence to the cordial relationship and collaboration between both countries and their law enforcement agencies.
While noting that the borderless nature of internet crimes has made collaboration and partnership among countries and law enforcement compelling, he stated the resolve of the EFCC to make the country unconducive for the corrupt and the fraudulent.
“It has become very imperative for us to understand that financial crimes have become a borderless crime.
“Sometimes you will discover that they operate from a different country and get their victims in another country and the proceeds of crime go to a different country. On our part, we are resolute to ensure that Nigeria is not made a safe haven for financial criminals and corrupt people.
“We do it to cleanse our system in collaboration with our partners across the world. We are much more ready to continue to do that. In the interest of both countries, we must do what we have to do.
“There must be mutual trust, mutual support for us to ensure that we cleanse the global financial ecosystem from being destroyed,” he said.
According to the EFCC boss, the resources criminals control across the world outstrip the wealth in the technology industry.
A romance scam is a type of confidence trick where a scammer pretends to be in a romantic relationship with a victim in order to steal money or personal information.