Court remands two suspects nabbed in cybercrime swoop at Oyibi

Two persons have been put before an Accra Circuit Court over charges of kidnapping, attempt to commit crime to wit defrauding and cyber security offences.  

Godwin Ekene, a computer technician, and Osazuwa Friday, a trader, have had their pleas not taken, pending investigations into the matter.  

The accused persons were alleged to have lured about 23 Nigerians to Ghana (Oyibi) to offer them jobs, but ended up compelling them to engage in cybercrime-related offences.  

An accomplice, whose name was given as Alvin, is at large.  

The court, presided over by Mr Kwabena Kodua Obiri-Yeboah, remanded them into police custody.  

The Prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Edina Atinga, said the complainants were security personnel from the Cybercrime Unit of the CID Headquarters and the Cyber Security Authority.  

The accused persons are all Nigerians.   

The complainants gathered intelligence that some Nigerians had been lured to Ghana under the pretext of giving them lucrative jobs, but they have rather been kidnapped and forced to engage in cyber-related offences.  

On July 3, 2025, a joint team of Police and cybersecurity men proceeded to apartments 16 and 20 of Ubuntu Heavens Estate at Oyibi, where they arrested the two accused persons, together with 23 other Nigerians working on their laptops.  

The team retrieved 33 laptops and accessories, one tablet, and 20 mobile phones during a search.  

The 23 Nigerians stated that they were brought in by Ekene, Friday, and one Alvin, currently at large,  from Nigeria to Ghana to be given “lucrative jobs”.  

However, they were instead kidnapped and forced to engage in cyber-related offences,  popularly known “yatino yahoo”.  

 The retrieved exhibits are yet to be sent to the forensic laboratory for examination.   

Efforts are being made to locate the relatives of the 23 victims.  

Investigations are underway.  

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