Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday convicted and sentenced four Filipino nationals alongside eight Nigerians over their involvement in cyber-terrorism, internet fraud, and money laundering.
The foreign nationals, Reyna Mae Eriba, Chyna Samonte, Zara Fabian, and Dominique Medina, were among 729 suspects apprehended during a large-scale raid conducted by security operatives in December 2024 at Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos. The raid uncovered what authorities described as an elaborate Ponzi and cyber-terrorism operation designed to defraud victims through digital schemes.
Their Nigerian counterparts who were convicted in the same case include Chidera Ezechukwu, Favour Oluchukwu, Egwenum Ifeanyi, David Okezie, Gbenga Shittu Solomon, Ibraheem Olamilekan, Chinecherem Michael, and Oghomienor Jotham.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), through its prosecution team led by Anita Imo, alongside Suleiman I. Suleiman, H.U. Kofarnaisa, and B.M. Isah, arraigned the 12 defendants on separate charges of cyber-terrorism, internet fraud, and money laundering. During the court proceedings, the EFCC revealed that the group targeted young Nigerians, luring them into fraudulent schemes involving identity theft and impersonation of foreign nationals to defraud unsuspecting victims.
According to the prosecution, “Chynna Samonte, sometime in December 2024, in Lagos, willfully accessed computer systems with the intention to destabilise and destroy the economic and social structure of Nigeria to recruit young Nigerians, exploiting them in schemes designed for identity theft to impersonate foreign nationals and defraud unsuspecting victims.”
The EFCC disclosed that the proceeds from these illegal operations were traced to multiple bank accounts. Notably, a sum of ₦12,750,318.63 was tracked to a United Bank for Africa (UBA) account belonging to one of the Nigerian convicts, Chidera Praise Ezechukwu, as of May 2025 in Lagos.
The commission added that Ezechukwu “reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of unlawful activity specifically, online dating scams.”
The agency noted that the crimes committed by the convicts were in violation of several Nigerian laws, including Section 18 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 (as amended in 2024), Section 2(3)(d) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and Section 14(1)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2004 (as amended), all of which carry penalties outlined under Section 14(2) of the same Act.
All twelve defendants pleaded guilty to the charges when arraigned.
Delivering judgment, Justice Bogoro pronounced all the defendants guilty as charged. The court also granted the prosecution’s prayer for the forfeiture of all exhibits recovered from the convicts.
In sentencing the defendants, the judge ruled, “The Nigeria Immigration Service is hereby directed to repatriate the foreign convicts to their country of origin (Philippines) within seven days of completing their prison terms.”
Each of the four Filipinos was sentenced to one year imprisonment with the option of paying a ₦1 million fine in lieu of serving the full term.
Among the Nigerians, Gbenga Shittu Solomon was handed a one-year jail term with an option to pay a ₦700,000 fine. The others—Oghomienor Jotham, Chinecherem Michael, Ibraheem Olamilekan, Chidera Ezechukwu Praise, David Okezie, Egwenum Ifeanyi, and Favour Oluchukwu—were sentenced to one-year imprisonment each, with the option of paying a ₦500,000 fine.
Justice Bogoro also ordered that “all vehicles, devices, funds, and other items recovered from the convicts” be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
