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The men, who were arrested in the South African city of Cape
Town in 2021, are set to be handed over to officials from the
FBI on Friday and transported to the U.S. to face wire fraud and
money laundering charges.
They are accused of belonging to a criminal network known as the
Black Axe, which Interpol describes as being part of criminal
groups responsible for a significant share of the world’s
cyber-enabled financial fraud, typically through romance scams,
cryptocurrency and investment scams.
According to South African police, the men are alleged to have
targeted more than 100 women in the U.S., defrauding them of
more than $6 million through online romance or love scams.
Among the alleged victims were pensioners and businesspeople who
were reportedly targeted through sophisticated online
relationships.
“Through the coordination of Interpol South Africa, the six will
today be transported from a correctional facility in Cape Town
to Cape Town International Airport, where they will be handed
over to officials from the FBI and the United States Secret
Service, who arrived in South Africa this morning,” said police
spokesperson Katlego Mogale.
A recent operation by Interpol targeting West African organized
crime groups led to the arrest of 58 people and the
identification of 263 suspects linked to various criminal
networks involved in similar crimes, the multinational police
body said last month.
The operation aimed to disrupt money laundering, identify
high-value targets, seize assets and support arrests and
prosecution.
In South Africa, authorities raided seven locations in the city
of Johannesburg linked to a syndicate that ran romance and
investment scams targeting retirees in English-speaking
countries.
In that operation in South Africa, police arrested 39 people,
seized $2.67 million and froze more than 250 bank accounts,
Interpol said.
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