The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed how suspected internet fraudsters, popularly known as Yahoo boys, stole more than ₦7.2 million from the bank account of a serving judge in the middle of the night.
Speaking at the launch of two books authored by retired High Court judge Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye, Olukoyede recounted how the judge called him around 1 a.m. after receiving multiple debit alerts from her bank.
According to him, the stolen money had been saved over six years to fund her child’s education.
“She had just been scammed of the money she had been putting together for six years to send her child to school,” Olukoyede said.
He disclosed that the fraudsters successfully withdrew about ₦7.2 million before the judge reached out to him for urgent assistance.
The EFCC chairman added that the incident occurred in a state where the commission had been restricted by a court order from carrying out certain financial crime investigations.
Recalling the conversation, he said the judge pleaded with him to intervene immediately.
“No, no, no! This is an exception. You must do something immediately!”
Olukoyede said the commission responded swiftly, launched an emergency investigation and successfully recovered the entire amount before the close of business that same day.
“Before 6 p.m., we recovered the entire money for her,” he said.
He noted that the incident demonstrates why cybercrime should never be treated lightly, stressing that many people only appreciate its impact after becoming victims themselves.
“When you become a direct victim, that is when you’ll know that something has to be done.”
The EFCC boss called for stronger collaboration among law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and members of the public to combat the growing threat of cybercrime.
He also urged the National Assembly and legal experts to review Nigeria’s laws to accommodate the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in criminal investigations.
According to him, current legal provisions make it difficult for AI-generated evidence to be admitted in court.
“I wish our legislators and professors of law will take time and come together to look at this area and come up with laws that will help us in the area of AI,” he said.
Also speaking at the event, former Attorney-General of the Federation, Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged anti-corruption agencies to intensify efforts to recover stolen public funds hidden in foreign countries.
