•Cover picture: The suspect.
A Ghana-based Nigerian national, Aderinsola Oluwanitemi Adeleye, has been arrested by the International Criminal Police Organisation (INTERPOL) in Ghana over allegations of cybercrime and financial-related offences linked to fraudulent ATM card transactions.
According to reports by GhanaWeb, the suspect came under investigation on June 25, 2026, after a series of suspicious transactions involving ATM cards issued by banks in the United States were carried out through Point of Sale (POS) terminals at selected filling stations in Ghana.
The investigation was triggered after the manager of Haatso Shell Filling Station in Accra alerted police following a complaint from Ecobank Ghana over a suspicious POS transaction at the station.
Preliminary investigations reportedly revealed that two employees of the filling station were allegedly involved in facilitating the withdrawals. The workers were arrested and later confessed to collaborating with Adeleye in carrying out the transactions.
Unaware that authorities had been alerted, Adeleye reportedly returned to the filling station later that evening, where staff recognised him and notified police, leading to his arrest.
According to The Peoples Gazette, officers who searched the suspect at the scene recovered a Beretta pistol loaded with two rounds of 9mm ammunition, as well as a Citibank Visa debit card.
A subsequent search of his office allegedly uncovered 15 additional rounds of live 9mm ammunition and an empty shell casing concealed in a drawer, while a court-authorised search of his residence on June 27 led to the seizure of two mobile phones and other electronic devices believed to be relevant to the investigation.
Authorities said Adeleye had already been on the radar of Ghana’s Cyber Security Authority over suspected cyber-enabled financial crimes before his arrest.
During interrogation, the suspect reportedly claimed that an acquaintance in the United States, identified as Gail Oneara, sent him the Citibank debit card as a gift with an available balance of about $10,000, adding that he had withdrawn approximately $8,000 before his arrest.
Investigators later confirmed that Ecobank Ghana had received a fraud alert from Citibank through Visa International regarding unauthorised transactions on debit cards belonging to two Citibank customers.
Officials further alleged that proceeds from the suspected fraud were invested in several assets, including a four-bedroom storey building, a cement block manufacturing business, a black Nissan ZNA pickup truck and other properties.
Meanwhile, authorities have launched a manhunt for other suspected members of the alleged syndicate believed to have fled. Reports said the operation involved INTERPOL, the Ghana Police Service and other security agencies.
Source: GhanaWeb.
