Three judges of the Federal High Court in Lagos have convicted and sentenced seven Chinese nationals to one year imprisonment for engaging in cyberterrorism and internet fraud linked to a large Ponzi scheme uncovered in December 2024.
The judges, Justices Ayokunle Faji, Chukwujekwu Aneke, and Yellim Bogoro, handed down the verdict in separate judgements on Friday.
The convicted foreigners are Peng Li Huan, Zhang Jin Rong, He Kun, Rachelle Cabalona, Caselyn Pionela, Guo Long Long, and Zhang Hua Zhai.
The convicts were arrested during a raid conducted by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a building on Oyin Jolayemi Street in Lagos.
The EFCC had apprehended over 700 individuals at the premises for offences related to cyber terrorism and economic sabotage.
The anti-graft agency arraigned them before the courts on separate one-count charges based on cyberterrorism and internet fraud.
The Commission accused the convicts of willfully accessing computer systems organised to seriously destabilise and destroy the fundamental economic and social structure of Nigeria.
During the proceedings, the EFCC prosecution team—led by Bilkisu Buhari-Bala, Chineye Okezie, and Banjo Temitope—informed the courts that the defendants had entered into plea bargain agreements, which were submitted on June 20, 2025.
Upon arraignment, all defendants pleaded guilty and confirmed that they voluntarily agreed to the plea bargain.
As a result, the courts convicted each of them and imposed a one-year prison sentence along with the option of N1 million fine.
The judges ordered that upon completing their prison terms, the Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) must ensure their deportation to their respective home countries within seven days.
The amended one-count charge stated that the convicts in December 2024, “willfully accessed computer systems organised to destabilise and destroy the fundamental economic and social structure of Nigeria by recruiting Nigerian youths to commit identity theft and impersonate foreign nationals for financial gain.”
The offence violates Section 18 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015 (as amended in 2024) and Section 2(3)(d) of the Terrorism (Prevention, Prohibition) Act, 2022.
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