Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has declared four Kenyan citizens wanted over their alleged involvement in a large-scale cryptocurrency investment scam that defrauded investors of over $840 million.
The suspects, who include Johnson Okiroh Otieno, Israel Mbaluka, Joseph Michiro Kabera, and Serah Michiro, are believed to be central figures in the now-defunct Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX), an online platform posing as a crypto investment hub.
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EFCC links CBEX scam to 3 African nations
According to a public notice issued by the EFCC, the four Kenyans are “suspected foreign accomplices wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for fraud allegedly perpetrated on an online trading platform called Crypto Bridge Exchange (CBEX).”
The EFCC revealed that CBEX lured thousands of investors across Nigeria, Kenya, and Egypt with promises of more monthly returns, claiming to use artificial intelligence (AI) for superior trading results.
The CBEX collapse has emerged as one of the largest crypto-related scams in Africa, prompting international cooperation in the hunt for the suspects.
“In Kenya, officers cracked a case of online credit card fraud linked to losses of $8.6 million,” Interpol said in a statement referencing an earlier bust involving 24 Kenyans. “The funds, stolen through fraudulent scripts run after altering the banking system’s security protocol, were promptly redistributed… to companies in the United Arab Emirates, Nigeria and China.”
The EFCC has also declared a foreign national, Elie Bitar, wanted in connection with the CBEX case. Bitar, whose nationality was not disclosed, was last known to reside in Lekki Phase 1, Lagos. He joins a growing list of individuals under investigation, including six Nigerians named as local promoters of the fraudulent platform.
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FBI, INTERPOL partner with financial crime unit
Concerns around CBEX mounted in April when users were suddenly locked out of their accounts. The platform’s Telegram support channel was taken offline, and users were instructed to deposit more money—one of the red flag signs of a digital exit scam.
CBEX operated without registration from Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a critical red flag.
“CBEX was not regulated by the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The platform operated without registration, which is a clear violation,” said Dr. David Udoh during a virtual event.
The EFCC concluded that it would cooperate with INTERPOL and the FBI to trace the missing funds and bring all the founders to justice.