Five alleged leaders of the South African wing of Black Axe, a global cybercrime group with operations spanning dozens of countries, were extradited to the United States Friday to face multiple charges, the Justice Department said.

Officials accuse the five people, all originally from Nigeria, of running romance scams and advance fee scams from at least 2011 until they were all arrested in South Africa in 2021. The defendants were due Monday for initial court appearances and arraignments in a federal court in Trenton, N.J.

“Black Axe is a notoriously violent transnational criminal organization that also happens to dabble in romance scams to make money,” Stefanie Roddy, special agent in charge of the FBI Newark field office, said in a statement. “The ability of FBI Newark and our partner agencies to reach into South Africa illustrates our resolve to hold accountable any and every type of fraudster who preys on innocent victims here in the United States.”

The accused include Perry Osagiede, founder and leader of the Cape Town Zone of Black Axe; Franklyn Edosa Osagiede, the zone’s “chief ihaza” Osariemen Eric Clement, “assistant eye of the zone,” Collins Owhofasa Otughwor, the zone’s “chief eye,” and Musa Mudashiru, one of the group’s “assistant butchers.”

Prosecutors said the five defendants and their co-conspirators used fake identities to pose as a love interest, relatives, business partners or friends to trick victims into sending them money.

Many of the scams involved claims that the alleged cybercriminals needed money for work travel or to hold them over financially following a series of unfortunate events. This included requests for loans, often involving issues with a construction site, delayed inheritance, or expensive health costs for claimed relatives, according to an unsealed indictment filed in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey in 2021. 

Prosecutors said the co-conspirators also used business entities and gained access to the financial accounts of some victims to conceal the funds illegally obtained from other victims. In some cases, the alleged Black Axe members threatened to distribute sensitive photos of victims when they hesitated to send money, officials added.

The extradition follows a heightened period of law enforcement activity targeting Black Axe in multiple countries. 

Authorities arrested 34 alleged cybercriminals in Spain, including some Black Axe leaders, for adversary-in-the-middle scams such as business email compromise, money laundering and vehicle trafficking in January. 

Officials seized millions in assets, arrested 58 individuals and identified 263 suspects, including members of Black Axe, in a multi-country sting operation in August. 

Black Axe is a highly structured, hierarchical group that generates billions of dollars in criminal proceeds annually from many small-scale operations spanning dozens of countries. 

All five of the extradited individuals are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. Perry Osagiede and Franklyn Osagiede are also charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Officials also charged Clement with wire fraud and Otughwor with aggravated identity theft. The combined charges carry up to 62 years in prison. 

“This case reflects the result of a years-long effort by the U.S. Secret Service and our law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and bring to justice those who allegedly preyed on victims through sophisticated online fraud and money laundering schemes,” Craig Marech, special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s Newark field office, said in a statement. 

The Justice Department published additional information about the Cape Town Zone wing of Black Axe, including multiple aliases and business entities used by the group’s members, and encouraged potential victims to contact the FBI.

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An international law enforcement operation carried out against organized crime groups in West Africa resulted in 58 arrests and identified 263 suspects, Interpol announced Tuesday.

The operation, known as Operation Jackal IV, aimed to disrupt money laundering, locate high-value targets, seize assets and support prosecutions tied to various Africa-based criminal groups, including Black Axe. 

Black Axe is a highly structured, hierarchical group that generates billions of dollars in criminal proceeds annually from many small-scale operations spanning dozens of countries. The group’s leaders are Nigerian nationals, according to a Europol release issued earlier this year. In January, European law enforcement arrested dozens of the group’s members for adversary-in-the-middle scams such as business email compromise, money laundering and vehicle trafficking. 

“Operation Jackal IV demonstrates the power of international cooperation,” Tomonobu Kaya, director of Interpol’s Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre, said in a release. “By following illicit financial flows across borders, we are attacking the very lifeblood of organized crime and making it increasingly difficult for criminal networks to profit from their activities.”

The agency said it will continue to work to unravel the full details of each case, but detailed several preliminary discoveries from partner organizations Tuesday.

Romanian authorities broke up a group that ran an investment scam from a call center promising high returns in stocks or cryptocurrencies. Victim payments were routed to electronic wallets controlled by the operators, with police estimating the full value at 143 million euros (approximately $166 million). They arrested 11 people and seized about 330,000 euros ($379,000) in cash and cryptocurrency, six properties and several luxury watches.

In South Africa, where 39 of the 58 arrests occurred, police raided seven sites in Johannesburg tied to a syndicate that targeted retirees in English-speaking countries with romance and investment scams. Investigators seized $2.67 million and blocked 257 bank accounts.

Authorities in Argentina identified 196 people linked to a Crime-as-a-Service network suspected of supplying website domains and laundering support to West African groups, making 17 arrests. 

In Italy, one person was identified in connection with a pan-European laundering network built on shell companies, remittance services and cash withdrawals. A single account moved 845,000 euros ($736,000) through 560 transactions.

Investigators also noted the group’s growing focus on sextortion, with victims as young as 14. Similar to actions taken by The Com, Interpol says offenders are contacting teenagers on social media, coercing them into taking explicit images, then demanding payment to keep the material private.

This is not the first time Interpol has taken measures to disrupt African-based groups. In 2024, a similar Interpol operation led to 300 arrests, $3 million in assets seized and 720 blocked bank accounts.

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