The Airport Police Command has arrested a 20-year-old suspect allegedly involved in a high-profile celebrity and international romance scam that defrauded victims in the United States of over one billion naira, equivalent to more than one million US dollars.
The suspect, Essien Emmanuel Akpama, was apprehended on January 5, 2026, while attempting to board a flight out of Lagos. The arrest followed months of intelligence-led surveillance and monitoring by the Anti-Fraud Unit of the Airport Police Command, based on credible information.
According to a statement signed by ASP Mohammed Adeola, Police Public Relations Officer of the Airport Police Command, preliminary investigations revealed that Akpama, who previously lived in Calabar, Cross River State, relocated to Lagos in February 2024 and used the city as a base to coordinate multiple fraudulent schemes.
In one notable case, Akpama allegedly tricked a 47-year-old US woman into transferring one million US dollars under the pretext of purchasing property in Florida for an orphanage. The fraud was carried out through a cryptocurrency scheme called “BullRun 2.0,” formerly known as “4 Way Mirror Money.” In another case, he defrauded a 70-year-old US victim of N25.7 million (around $18,000) through purchases of gift cards, high-end mobile devices, and computer equipment, which were shipped to Nigeria under his direction.
Items recovered in connection with the investigation include a MacBook Pro 14-inch, an iPhone 17 Pro Max, and several Google Pixel devices, collectively valued at over N8.1 million. Investigators also revealed that Akpama posed as a 60-year-old orthopaedic surgeon working with the United Nations, claiming the devices were necessary for secure communications with his victims.
The Commissioner of Police, Airport Police Command, CP Ogunbode Olufunke, reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to preventing criminal elements from exploiting Nigerian airports to evade justice. She said the Command would continue intelligence-driven operations to detect, disrupt, and dismantle criminal networks operating within and around Nigeria’s aviation system.
The case has been transferred to the Nigeria Police Force Special Fraud Unit for further investigation, and Akpama is expected to be arraigned in court upon completion of the ongoing investigations.
This arrest underscores the growing collaboration between law enforcement agencies and intelligence units in combating transnational fraud and protecting both national and international financial interests.
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