Interpol clamps down on cybercrime and arrests over 1,000 suspects in Africa

Associated Press Dakar (Senegal): Interpol arrested 1,006 suspects in Africa during a two-month operation clamping down on cybercrime that left tens of thousands of victims, including some who were trafficked, and produced millions in financial damages, the global police organisation said Tuesday. Operation Serengeti, a joint operation with Afripol, the African Union's police agency, ran from Sept 2 to Oct 31 in 19 African countries and targeted criminals behind ransomware, business email compromise, digital extortion and online scams, the agency said in a statement.

“From multi-leve l marketing scams to credit card fraud on an industrial scale, the increasing volume and sophistication of cybercrime attacks is of serious concern," said Valdecy Urquiza, the Secretary General of Interpol. Interpol pinpointed 35,000 victims, with cases linked to nearly USD 193 million in financial losses worldwide, stating that local police authorities and private sector partners, including internet service providers, played a key role in the operation. “Through Serengeti, Afripol has significantly enhanced support for law enforcement in African Union Member States," Jalel Chelba, Afripol's Executive Director, said in the statement. In Kenya, the police made nearly two dozen arrests in an online credit card fraud case linked to losses of USD 8.6 million.

In the West African country of Senegal, officers arrested eight people, including five Chinese nationals, for a USD 6 million online Ponzi scheme. Chelba said Afripol's focus now includes emerging threats like Artificial Intelligencedriven malware and advanced cyberattack techniques. Other dismantled networks included a group in Cameroon suspected of using a multi-level marketing scam for human trafficking.