Black axe mafia: German police arrest suspected Nigerian scammers
On Wednesday, German police announced the arrest of 11 suspected members of a Nigerian mafia group involved in a large-scale dating scam.
According to Bavarian police, the Black Axe gang engaged in "various criminal activities" internationally, focusing on romance scams and money laundering in Germany.
The dating scam was described by police as a "modern version of marriage fraud."
"Using fake identities, the scammers would pretend to be interested in marriage and then repeatedly request money under false pretenses during further communication," police stated.
The money collected was then sent to the Black Axe group in Nigeria through financial intermediaries, authorities confirmed.
The gang employed a method of "commodity-based money laundering," purchasing products, often with an appearance of charity, and shipping them to Nigeria.
Police reported that Bavaria alone had 450 reported cases of romance scams in 2023, resulting in damages of 5.3 million euros ($5.7 million).
The suspects, all Nigerian citizens aged between 29 and 53, were apprehended during nationwide raids on Tuesday.
Authorities conducted searches at 19 locations, including residences and asylum centers.
Black Axe operated with a "strict hierarchy" under Nigerian leadership, managing various territorial units and exerting significant influence, especially in Nigerian politics and public institutions.
The gang's global operations included human trafficking, fraud, money laundering, prostitution, and drug trafficking.
Under the guise of the Neo Black Movement of Africa, a purportedly charitable organization, Black Axe disguised its criminal activities.
This operation against Black Axe marked the first of its kind in Germany, according to police.
Comments