The government of the United States of America has announced its readiness to invest resources in apprehending international scammers targeting its citizens.
This was contained in a statement recently posted on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office, the District of Massachusetts.
This comes after a US-based company was defrauded of N8bn, and some of the money was transferred to different countries, including Nigeria.
The statement added that the timely intervention of US authorities prevented much of the funds from leaving the country before it was frozen.
The swindlers were said to have used a spoofed email that the victim did not notice, and requested that payment be made to a list of pre-planned accounts.
Some of the funds were then transferred to cryptocurrency wallets and international banks, away from the legal reach of the US government. The bulk of the money, about $5,315,746, saved in seven domestic banks, was however seized on the government’s approval.
The US also declared interest in curbing the growing number of cases of foreigners fleecing its citizens of their hard-earned money, directing victims to start lodging complaints with an agency that would investigate the cases.
The government listed cryptocurrency scams, romance scams, investment scams, and business email compromise fraud scams as its main targets.
Acting US Attorney, Joshua Levy, stated that Americans who believed they were victims of a cybercrime – including cryptocurrency scams, romance scams, investment scams and business email compromise, fraud scams— should contact the government through a dedicated website.
He said, “We hope today’s action helps restore some level of stability and justice for those impacted by fraud.”
Meanwhile, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had earlier revealed in a meeting with media executives in Abuja that banks nationwide lost over N8bn in 2022 to Internet fraud.
