Olukoyede says commission recovered stolen funds within hours, unveils AI-driven crime-fighting strategy
The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has disclosed that suspected internet fraudsters, popularly known as “Yahoo Boys,” emptied the bank account of a serving judge overnight, stealing more than ₦7.2 million saved over six years for the education of the judge’s child.
Olukoyede made the disclosure on Friday during the public presentation of two books authored by retired High Court Judge, Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye.
According to the EFCC Chairman, the judge contacted him at about 1:00 a.m. after being awakened by a series of debit alerts indicating that funds were being withdrawn from her account.
“She had just been scammed of the money she had been putting together for six years to send her child to school. She said alerts woke her up. She received debit alerts at that time of the day. Before she knew it, she had been scammed of about ₦7.2 million,” Olukoyede recounted.
He revealed that the incident occurred in a state where the EFCC had previously been restrained by a court order from investigating certain categories of financial crimes.
Recalling his conversation with the judge, Olukoyede said he jokingly reminded her of the existing court order restricting the commission’s activities in the state.
“I said, ‘My lord, I have an order, an injunction restraining me from investigating financial crimes in that state.’
“She replied, ‘No, no, no! This is an exception. You must do something immediately!'” he said.
The EFCC Chairman disclosed that the commission swiftly traced the perpetrators and successfully recovered the entire stolen sum before the close of business on the same day.
“Before 6 p.m., we recovered the entire money for her. I am very sure that if an application comes before her to stop the EFCC from carrying out its mandate, she will dismiss it because she has become a victim,” he added.
Olukoyede described cybercrime as one of Nigeria’s most pressing security challenges, stressing that defeating the menace would require collective action involving security agencies, the judiciary, lawmakers and the general public.
“Not until we, as Nigerians, come together and agree to face this challenge, with law enforcement agencies playing their role, citizens doing their part and the judiciary also doing its part, will we be able to overcome this problem. Nigeria can do it, and we will succeed,” he said.
EFCC Deploys Artificial Intelligence in Investigations
The EFCC Chairman also disclosed that the commission has begun deploying Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in criminal investigations to strengthen its operations.
However, he noted that Nigeria’s legal framework must evolve to address emerging issues surrounding the admissibility of AI-generated evidence in court.
“We have already started deploying AI tools in the investigation of crime, but the challenge is how to generate evidence through AI and make it admissible in court.
“Robots and AI systems can now perform tasks previously handled by humans. We need lawmakers, legal scholars and stakeholders to work together in developing laws that address this new reality,” Olukoyede stated.
Also speaking at the event, former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged the EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies to intensify efforts toward recovering public funds allegedly looted and hidden in foreign countries.
He stressed that recovering stolen assets remains critical to Nigeria’s economic development and the fight against corruption.
AIV NEWS reports that the EFCC has continued to strengthen its anti-cybercrime operations amid growing concerns over the increasing sophistication of internet fraud and other technology-driven financial crimes across the country.
