Europol on Friday announced the arrest of 34 individuals in Spain who are alleged to be part of an international criminal organization called Black Axe.
As part of an operation conducted by the Spanish National Police, in coordination with the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office and Europol, 28 arrests were made in Seville, along with three others in Madrid, two in Málaga, and one in Barcelona.
“The criminal network is known for its involvement in a wide range of criminal activities, including cyber-enabled fraud, drug trafficking, human trafficking and prostitution, kidnapping, armed robbery and fraudulent spiritual practices,” Europol said in a statement.
It’s estimated that the criminal network is responsible for fraud resulting in damages exceeding €5.93 million ($6.9 million). In addition to the arrests, authorities have frozen €119,352 ($138,935) in bank accounts and seized €66,403 ($77,290) in cash during house searches.
Black Axe is assessed to be a hierarchical criminal group that had its origins in Nigeria in 1977 before spreading to dozens of countries across the world. The organization is said to have about 30,000 registered members, and other affiliates such as money mules and facilitators.
In a report published in late 2022, INTERPOL announced the arrests of 75 individuals associated with the syndicate for defrauding victims of millions as part of a law enforcement effort codenamed Operation Jackal.
The “violent mafia-style gang” has been attributed to a laundry list of cyber-enabled activities, including business email compromise schemes, romance scams, inheritance scams, credit card fraud, tax fraud, advance payment scams, and money laundering, that facilitate financial fraud.
In July 2024, INTERPOL said it had confiscated more than $5 million in assets, cryptocurrencies, and luxury items in two subsequent operations. These efforts also led to over 400 arrests and the identification of thousands of additional suspects.
“Black Axe is one of the most prominent West African transnational organized crime syndicates, with operations in cyber fraud, human trafficking, drug smuggling, and violent crimes both within Africa and globally,” the agency noted at the time.
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