Crime
PHOTOS: Nigerian man extradited to the U.S from UK after being indicted for s3xtortion, romance scam and other fraud schemes
A 34-year-old Nigerian man, Olamide Shanu, has appeared in a court in Idaho after being extradited to the United States from the United Kingdom for alleged sextortion, romance scam and other fraud schemes.
Acting United States Attorney Justin Whatcott made the announcement in a statement issued by the Department of Justice on September 18, 2025.
Shanu made his initial appearance on Wednesday, September 17 before U.S. Magistrate Juge Debora K. Grasham.
He faces prosecution in an indictment for his role in several cyber-enabled schemes including “sextortion” and romance scams.
Shanu is charged in an eight-count indictment with wire fraud conspiracy, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit interstate communications with intent to extort and cyberstalking, conspiracy to commit extortion, money laundering conspiracy, extortion, interstate communications with intent to commit extortion, and cyberstalking.
Authorities in London arrested Shanu in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2023, based on the indictment filed in the District of Idaho. Shanu has remained incarcerated since the arrest.
According to the indictment, Shanu and his conspirators posed as females on social media and persuaded their victims, typically males, to send sexual images of themselves.
The indictment alleges that once the victims sent the explicit images, the conspirators threatened to send the explicit images to the victims’ friends and families unless the victim paid money.
The indictment alleges that the conspirators engaged in this extortion of numerous victims across the United States, including a college student in Idaho.
The indictment alleges the conspirators also perpetrated, among other cyber-enabled schemes, a romance scam scheme. Proceeds from the schemes were allegedly laundered using peer-to-peer payment applications and several cryptocurrency wallet addresses before allegedly being transferred to the scheme’s perpetrators in Nigeria. Nigerian fashion
According to the indictment, Shanu fraudulently obtained at least $2,000,000 from the fraud schemes.
If convicted of the charges, Shanu faces up to 20 years in federal prison. He also faces restitution for the losses incurred by the victims of the scheme.
Acting U.S. Attorney Whatcott thanked the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) and the U.S. State Department for their help in facilitating the arrest and extradition of Shanu.
Acting U.S. Attorney Whatcott also extends his appreciation and thanks to the National Extradition Unit of the United Kingdon’s National Crime Agency, who provided critical assistance with the arrest and extradition of Shanu.
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Boise Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Brittney Campbell and Sean Mazorol and Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) Trial Attorney Vasantha Rao.
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The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has recorded major breakthroughs in the fight against drug trafficking, arresting two men who returned from Brazil with heroin and cocaine in their bodies, alongside other seizures that stretched from Lagos to Zamfara, Adamawa and Edo.
In a statement released on Sunday, September 21, 2025, and signed by Femi Babafemi, Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA Headquarters, Abuja, the agency disclosed that the arrests were made at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, and across several states.
One of the suspects, 46-year-old Ofoma Sunday, was stopped on September 16 after arriving from Brazil via Ethiopia. A body scan confirmed that he had ingested drugs.
While under observation, he excreted 111 wraps of heroin weighing 1.45 kilograms. NDLEA operatives later stormed a hotel in Amuwo Odofin, where he was instructed to deliver the drugs, and arrested 55-year-old Nweke Jude Chuckwudi, the alleged receiver.
Just days later, another returnee, Ukachukwu Frank Ikechukwu, was picked up on September 19. He was carrying cocaine internally and, under watch, expelled five large wraps weighing 145 grams.
He admitted he had inserted nine wraps in Brazil but could only reinsert seven after suffering anal pain while transiting through Ethiopia. He flushed the remaining two wraps in a toilet before boarding his flight to Nigeria.
In another case at Lagos airport, Okolonkwo Ebere Theresa, a businesswoman from Enugu, was caught on September 14 while attempting to board a Qatar Airways flight to Doha.
She had concealed 1.40 kilograms of methamphetamine in her butt pad underwear. According to her statement, she runs a second-hand clothing trade and POS business but was lured into trafficking.
NDLEA operatives also uncovered shipments concealed in everyday goods. At the NAHCO export shed, 2.3 kilograms of meth hidden in food items destined for Hong Kong were intercepted, while a separate consignment of 257 grams of cocaine concealed inside seven phone chargers was stopped from leaving for New Zealand.
The crackdown extended beyond Lagos. In Adamawa, officers recovered 233,800 pills of tramadol across different raids, including one abandoned vehicle loaded with the drugs. In Zamfara, a truck conveying over one ton of skunk cannabis was seized.
In Edo, two cannabis farms covering more than four hectares were destroyed, yielding over 11,000 kilograms of illegal plants.
While praising the operatives, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd), said: “These arrests and seizures represent a significant milestone in our determined effort to dismantle drug trafficking organizations operating in Nigeria and around the world, prioritizing those bent on targeting our productive youth population with illicit substances until they’re no longer able to inflict harm on our communities or misrepresent our country’s image in the global space.”
The statement added that NDLEA formations across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitisation drive in schools, religious centres, workplaces and communities during the week.
Below are pictures taken after the arrests:
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A three-year-old girl is currently in an induced coma, fighting for her life, after allegedly being r3ped, st3bbed, and left for d3ad on a shack’s roof in the Lion Park informal settlement in Diepsloot, Gauteng, South Africa.
The 28-year-old suspect, Dlodlo, the mother’s ex-boyfriend and a once-trusted family friend who often babysat the child, was reportedly caught by community members, while drinking with friends, and appeared unaware that the child had survived and was fighting for her life in the hospital.
He allegedly confessed, claiming that “the devil made him do it.”
A community member discovered Warona (a pseudonym) on the roof of the suspect’s shack on Sunday, September 7, 2025, around 6pm.
The child had been under the care of her grandmother while her mother was at work when Dlodlo took her and two other children under the pretence of buying them sweets.
When the other two children returned without Warona, neighbours alerted the grandmother.
The incident has left the community reeling and sparked urgent calls for justice.
Family members told journalists on Saturday, September 20, that medical reports confirmed the child had been s3xually v!0lated, st@bbed in the neck, and left on the roof before the suspect fled the scene.
“She was brought down from the roof and rushed to Diepsloot Clinic, but her injuries were too severe. She was referred to Yusuf Dadoo Hospital, then Leratong, and finally Baragwanath Hospital,” a close relative explained.
“She underwent extensive surgery on her gen!tals and neck before being placed in an induced coma.”
The family described the suspect as a trusted figure.
“We didn’t see any problem with him spending time with the baby. That’s why we didn’t worry when she wasn’t back home yet,” a family member said.
They revealed that when the community learned of the crime, they launched a search and found the alleged perpetrator was eventually found drinking with friends after a tip-off.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) had earlier issued a public alert and a wanted picture of the suspect a day after the incident, appealing to the public for assistance in tracing him.
The Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) detectives, along with members from the K9, Drone unit and Crime Intelligence, mobilised resources to find him.
By the time officers reached the scene, the shack where the attack took place had already been torn down by outraged community members, according to the statement.
Police then warned against tampering with crime scenes, stressing that it can compromise evidence and hinder ongoing investigations.
Gauteng Police spokesperson, Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo confirmed that the man appeared in court on September 12, and is scheduled to appear at Randburg Magistrate’s Court on November 7, 2025.
“Police can confirm that a suspect who was wanted for allegedly raping a three-year-old girl in Diepsloot was apprehended by the private security officers on Tuesday, September 9. He was charged with rape and appeared before Randburg Magistrate’s Court.”
As the case proceeds, civil society groups, the victim’s family, and the Lanseria community continue to demand swift justice. For them, this case has become a painful reminder of South Africa’s ongoing battle against gender-based violence and child abuse and the urgent need to protect its most vulnerable citizens.
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Crime
PHOTOS: Angry villagers protest as herdsmen k!ll Catholic choirmaster, father and son in Benue
Hundreds of angry villagers from Achakpa community, Agan, in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, blocked the busy Makurdi–Abuja highway on Saturday in protest against the k!lling of residents by armed Fulani herdsmen.
The attack, which occurred in the early hours of Saturday, September 20, 2025, on the outskirts of Achakpa community along the North Bank–Lafia road, claimed the lives of a man identified as Tor Felafa, his son, Peter and Mr. Francis Kulegwa, a senior choir master of Daudu Mission in the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi.
Several others were abducted, while many narrowly escaped, with some persons still missing.
Eyewitnesses said the victims were ambushed while working on their farms behind the village, a tactic the assailants allegedly used after closely monitoring farming activities in the area.
The protesters, who blocked the Garba–Atson–Abagena IDP camp axis of the highway, carried placards and tree branches, chanting solidarity songs and vowing not to vacate the road until justice is served.
A traveller, Melody Ede, who was on her way to Abuja, said the blockage caused motorists to be stranded as the villagers insisted the state governor must address them.
The spokesperson of the State Police Command, DSP Udeme Edet, confirmed the k!llings but gave no further details.
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