Police Arrest ‘Fake’ World Bank Official Over $250,000 Cross-Border Fraud
The Nigeria Police Force has arrested a suspected fraudster who allegedly paraded himself a World Bank official to defraud unsuspecting victims.
This was just as police operatives uncovered a cross-border scam involving $250,000 and millions of naira, alongside multiple cybercrime cases.
The Force Public Relations Officer, DCP Anthony Okon Placid, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday, saying that the operations were carried out by the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre under the leadership of Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Rilwan Disu.
According to him, the operations also led to the arrest of other suspects linked to business email compromise and internal financial fraud.
In one of the major breakthroughs, police arrested Agbor Martins Black-Diamond, also known as Oruojong Black Diamond Agbor Martins, for allegedly posing as a World Bank official to defraud foreign victims.
According to the police, the suspect deceived victims from Kenya into paying a total of $250,000 over three years under the guise of accessing donor funding.
“Preliminary investigation revealed that the complainants relying on the fraudulent claims, transferred a total of USD $250,000 over three years for purported registration and administrative fees meant to unlock donor funding,” the statement said.
The police said no such funding existed, noting that the suspect organised fake symposiums in Nigeria and South Africa to sustain the scheme.
“In 2024, he further induced the victims to secure a bank loan against their family property to access a non-existent $850,000 empowerment fund in Ghana,” the statement added.
Financial investigations confirmed inflows of $57,975 between February and July 2023, while the suspect was arrested on March 31, 2026.
Police further disclosed that the suspect’s organisation, Black Diamond African Beauty Restoration Foundation, was not registered in Nigeria, prompting him to register another entity, United African Continent Limited, in November 2024 to legitimise his activities.
“Further findings indicate the suspect extended his fraudulent scheme to local farmers in Kuje Area Council, collecting ₦50,000 each under the guise of empowerment and capacity building,” the police said.
In a separate case, operatives arrested one Chinedu Mbachu, a former employee of a company in Makurdi, over allegations of unauthorised system modification, cybersquatting, and diversion of funds.
“He confessed to have used his personal bank accounts to receive customer payments intended for the company,” the statement noted, adding that items recovered include a Samsung A6 Plus mobile phone and identification documents.
In another development, police arrested two suspects, Ayodele Daramola, 31, and Dada Babatunde Oluwatobi, 29, for alleged involvement in business email compromise and financial fraud.
Investigations revealed that between May and December 2025, the suspects allegedly diverted ₦85,000,000 from a company by exploiting internal systems.
“The suspects allegedly siphoned a total sum of ₦85,000,000.00 by exploiting internal systems and channelling the funds through a commercial bank account belonging to Dada Babatunde Oluwatobi,” the police said.
The Force Spokesman disclosed that 21 per cent of the funds, approximately ₦17.85 million, was retained by Oluwatobi, while 79 per cent, about ₦67.15 million, was transferred to an account linked to Daramola.
He added, that further findings showed that about ₦61 million received by Daramola was spent on online gambling and betting platforms.
Items recovered from the suspects include ₦4 million in cash, an unserviceable Lexus ES350 vehicle, a Dell laptop, and an iPhone 13 Pro Max.
The police noted that investigations are ongoing to recover the remaining funds and prosecute those involved.
The police reiterated their commitment to tackling cybercrime and protecting Nigeria’s digital economy.
“Nigeria is not a safe haven for cybercriminals and the Force will relentlessly pursue all persons, domestic or foreign, who exploit technology, internal systems, and cross-border partnerships for fraudulent purposes,” the police spokesperson added.