‎By Teddy Nwanunobi

‎The International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL), has disclosed that it arrested over 5,800 fraudsters, and intercepted $293 million in global operations in Nigeria and 96 other countries between January and April, 2026.

‎It said in a statement on Thursday that its “global anti-fraud operation involving 97 countries and territories has led to the arrest of 5,811 individuals and the interception of $293 million in illicit assets.”

‎Code named, ‘Operation First Light 2026’ coordinated by INTERPOL, the operations focused on combating social engineering scams and associated money laundering activities in the first quarter of the year, from January 15 – April 30, 2026).

‎According to INTERPOL, social engineering is a broad term that refers to techniques that exploit a person’s trust to obtain money or confidential information. This type of fraud can include business email compromise, sextortion, as well as romance, impersonation or investment scams.

‎“Over 142,000 victims globally were identified during Operation First Light 2026, highlighting the extent to which social engineering scams and fraud have escalated into a major transnational threat, affecting individuals, businesses and governments.

‎“Other significant results include: 152,808 cases analyzed, 31,014 bank accounts blocked,  23,715 cases solved, 15,606 suspects identified, 99 notices and diffusions issued,” the INTERPOL said.

‎The Director of the INTERPOL Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre, Tomonobu Kaya, said “Social engineering scams continue to pose a significant threat to our society. Criminal syndicates exploit human psychology to manipulate their targets, and no nation can stay safe unless all countries are equipped and committed to jointly fighting back.

‎“INTERPOL is dedicated to supporting member countries in building a comprehensive, coordinated strategy to tackle cyber-enabled financial crimes, organized criminal networks and the money laundering that fuels them.”

‎Highlighting operations in some countries during Operation First Light, the INTERPOL mentioned some of its activities in Eswatini, China, Thailand, Singapore and other countries.

‎The INTERPOL in collaboration with the Nigerian police arrested and extradited Samuel ‘PutSammy’ Ugberaese, a South Africa-based Nigerian internet fraudster and socialite based named in multimillion-dollar romance scams in the United States of America.