By Desire Emmanuel
The European International Police Organisation, Europol, with the support of Swiss authorities, on Tuesday, April 28, carried out a significant operation against the ‘Black Axe’ criminal organisation, resulting in the arrest of 10 Nigerian citizens in Switzerland.
This international effort, also conducted in collaboration with German law enforcement, targeted leaders and members of the Nigerian criminal network engaged in online fraud and money laundering.
It was gathered that on April 28, house searches were carried out in several Swiss cantons, leading to the arrest of the Black Axe ‘Regional Head’ for the Southern European region and nine further persons.
Those arrested were are accused of numerous crimes, including romance scams, cyber fraud and money laundering, causing millions of Swiss francs in damages.
‘Black Axe,’ linked to the Neo-Black Movement of Africa, is a highly structured, hierarchical group with a global presence.
The organisation is known for its involvement in various criminal activities, generating billions of euros in annual criminal proceeds.
“This operation highlights the importance of international cooperation in combating transnational crime. Europol provided support through information analysis, data sprints, and centralising intelligence,” Europol said in a statement on its website on Wednesday morning.
Authorities estimated that the organisation has around 30,000 registered members, along with affiliated individuals such as money mules and facilitators. The group is believed to generate billions of euros each year through small-scale operations.
Europol says the group enforces strict codes of conduct and violent, ritualistic initiations.
The investigation was led by the Public Prosecutor’s Office II of the Canton of Zurich (Staatsanwaltschaft II Zürich), working with Zurich Cantonal Police (Kantonspolizei Zürich) and Zurich City Police (Stadtpolizei Zürich).
