The Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Center (NPF-NCCC) has apprehended a 39-year-old woman, Urowhe Diana, and her 22-year-old daughter, Rokibat Oluwasheyi Imoru, in Lagos State for their alleged involvement in a cross-border romance scam that defrauded a victim based in Malta of over ₦18 million. The arrest, which was officially confirmed on Wednesday, May 27, 2026, by the NPF-NCCC’s Acting Police Public Liaison Officer, DSP Unwana Imah, followed an actionable intelligence report flagged by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).
According to police investigations, the illicit operation was a family affair orchestrated alongside Diana’s husband and Rokibat’s stepfather, Emmanuel Amanfo, who is currently at large. The syndicate utilized identity theft and computer-related fraud to manipulate the foreign victim into sending large sums of money through international money transfer operators and direct deposits. The funds were funneled into multiple bank accounts opened and operated by the 22-year-old Rokibat before being systematically transferred into an Ecobank account belonging to her mother, where the criminal proceeds were reportedly spent.
Following a thorough forensic analysis of the suspects’ digital footprints, cybercrime detectives tracked down and arrested the mother and daughter for money laundering and active participation in the syndicate. While both women remain in custody and are scheduled to be charged to court as soon as the inquiry wraps up, law enforcement agents have launched a massive manhunt to track down and apprehend the fleeing mastermind, Emmanuel Amanfo.