Army Raises Alarm Over Fake COAS Accounts on Social Media

Linus Aleke in Abuja

The Nigerian Army has warned the public about the activities of a cybercriminal impersonating the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, on various social media platforms.The Army urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and to disregard any messages, requests or communications purportedly originating from the COAS through unofficial channels.

In a statement  by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, the Army described the development as a growing concern, noting a disturbing increase in fake social media accounts operated by unscrupulous individuals falsely claiming to represent or be associated with the COAS.

She stressed that the impersonation is entirely fraudulent and reaffirmed that the Chief of Army Staff does not maintain any official social media presence on any platform.

Colonel Anele cautioned members of the public to exercise extreme care and avoid engaging with such accounts, which are often used to defraud unsuspecting individuals, solicit funds or spread misinformation in the name of the COAS or the Nigerian Army.

She advised Nigerians not to respond to, engage with or share content from these fake accounts, but instead to report them to the appropriate authorities.

She further disclosed that the Nigerian Army is taking all necessary steps to identify and apprehend those behind the fraudulent accounts, with a view to prosecuting them in line with existing laws.

The Army, she added, remains fully committed to protecting the lives and property of citizens and safeguarding the territorial integrity of the country, as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Spain Arrests Dozens of Suspected ‘Black Axe’ Crime Ring Members

Spanish police have arrested 34 people in a nationwide operation against an international crime ring known as “Black Axe” on accusations of fraud, money laundering and document forgery, Europol said yesterday.Black Axe originated in Nigeria as a student confraternity in the late 1970s and has since evolved into a structured, violent criminal organisation dealing mainly in cyber-enabled financial crime, Reuters reported.The arrests were carried out across several Spanish provinces from Seville in the south to Barcelona in the northeast with support from Europol, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation.Europol said the operation was coordinated with authorities in Germany as part of a wider investigation.The organised crime network allegedly recruited money mules in impoverished areas of Spain with high unemployment rates.“Most of these vulnerable individuals are Spanish nationals and are exploited to facilitate the network’s criminal activities,” Europol said in a statement.Investigators estimate that the network had defrauded its victims of more than 5.9 million euros ($6.87 million).