Key Takeaways
- The EFCC charged Usie Osang for a crypto scam that defrauded an Australian CEO of over $9 million.
- VASPA notes the case counters claims that Nigeria acts as a safe haven for global cybercriminals.
- Justice Egwuatu ordered the defendant remanded in Kuje custody ahead of a July 14, 2026 bail hearing.
EFCC Charges Suspect Over Crypto Fraud
Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency has charged a man accused of orchestrating a multimillion-dollar crypto investment scam that defrauded an Australian investor, officials announced.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Usie Otukpa Osang before Justice Obiora Egwuatu at the Federal High Court in Abuja. Osang faces eight counts related to a fraudulent scheme involving AUD$8.43 million ($5.6 million) and an additional $3.64 million.
Prosecutors allege the fraud took place between May 2021 and May 2022. Osang and several accomplices—who remain at large—used the aliases “Oscar Tyler” and “Ford Thompson” to deceive Brian Jacques Creigh, an Australian national and CEO of Panacea Capital.
According to investigators, the group convinced Creigh to invest in “Liquid Assets Group,” a fictitious online crypto-trading platform promising massive returns. As part of the scheme, Osang allegedly received 19.806 bitcoin (valued at roughly $1.08 million at the time) via a Binance wallet. Osang pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Following the plea, prosecutor Christopher Mshelia requested a trial date and asked that the defendant remain in custody, while defense counsel K.I. Shuaibu applied for bail. Justice Egwuatu ordered Osang remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre and scheduled a bail hearing for July 14, 2026.
While the high-profile arraignment is being viewed as a step toward altering the perception that Nigeria is indifferent to international cybercrime victims, Rume Ophi, Lead of Programs and Communication at VASPA, pushed back against the country’s reputation as a cybercrime hub.
“That narrative is largely an amplified perception that does not reflect the reality of the country’s efforts to combat financial crime,” Ophi told Bitcoin.com News.
Ophi suggested that foreign nationals are often the true masterminds behind these operations, recruiting locals to execute them. While acknowledging that more can be done, Ophi emphasized that Nigerian authorities deserve credit for their enforcement efforts and urged the public to promptly report crypto-related scams.
