The international spotlight is on Nigeria this week as both the UK and the FBI ramp up efforts to tackle serious crimes, with significant operations targeting immigration violations and online extortion scams.
In a coordinated move by UK authorities, 43 individuals have been deported to Nigeria and Ghana, marking a major step in the UK’s ongoing crackdown on illegal immigration.
A statement released by the UK Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO) confirmed the deportation of these offenders, including 15 failed asylum seekers and 11 foreign national criminals who had completed their prison sentences.
Though the exact dates of the deportations remain undisclosed, the operation highlights the UK government’s continuing efforts to manage its immigration challenges.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has overseen several deportation flights, with the latest sending 43 people back to Nigeria and Ghana.
The deportations are part of the broader strategy to curb illegal immigration following the unraveling of the controversial UK-Rwanda migration deal, which was ruled unlawful by the UK Supreme Court in 2023.
Angela Eagle, UK Minister for Border Security and Asylum, expressed gratitude to the governments of Nigeria and Ghana for their cooperation, emphasizing that the move reflects strong international collaboration on immigration issues.
According to the UK government, over 24,000 individuals have been deported in the last year alone, a notable 11% increase compared to the previous year.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the FBI has made significant strides in a global operation targeting Nigerian-based sextortion syndicates that have devastated the lives of American teens.
A report from the FBI revealed that 22 Nigerians were arrested for their roles in extorting teenage boys, some of whom tragically took their own lives in response to the torment.
These individuals were reportedly part of a larger network that operated globally, with perpetrators posing as young women on social media platforms to lure victims into sharing explicit content.
Once the victims sent compromising images, the scammers would demand payments, often in the form of gift cards, cryptocurrency, or mobile payments, threatening to expose the material if their demands were not met.
The FBI’s investigation, dubbed “Operation Artemis,” has unveiled a disturbing surge in sextortion cases, with a 30% increase in reported incidents from October 2024 to March 2025, compared to the previous year.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) recorded over 54,000 victims in 2024, up from 34,000 in 2023, and nearly $65 million in financial losses linked to these crimes.
Alarmingly, the victims of this disturbing trend are primarily young boys aged 14 to 17, and more than 20 minors have died by suicide as a result of the extortion.
The FBI has linked many of these cases directly to Nigerian operatives. During Operation Artemis, several Nigerian suspects were extradited to the United States, including one man facing charges related to the death of a South Carolina teenager.
FBI Director Kash Patel praised the operation’s international scope, stressing the importance of global cooperation in fighting such heinous crimes.
“This operation highlights the critical need for international cooperation to address this growing threat, and it’s a fight we can’t take on without our valued partners across the globe,” he said.
Both the UK’s deportation effort and the FBI’s crackdown on sextortion reflect a growing recognition of the need for robust international collaboration to address complex and dangerous criminal activities.
With more arrests anticipated and the continued effort to safeguard vulnerable populations, these operations underscore the importance of global cooperation in tackling crime at its roots.
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