The Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced two Chinese nationals to 46 years’ imprisonment each for orchestrating a massive cybercrime and money laundering operation that recruited Nigerian youths and siphoned billions of naira through cryptocurrency and bank accounts.
Justice Daniel Osiagor convicted Huang Haoyu, also known as Ken, and An Hongxu, directors of Genting International Co. Limited, after they changed their pleas to guilty on a seven-count charge brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The court handed each convict a cumulative 46-year sentence, with an option of a N56 million fine, three days of community service, and ordered their repatriation to China after serving their terms.
The case stems from a sweeping EFCC crackdown in December 2024 that led to the arrest of 792 suspected internet and cryptocurrency fraud suspects across Lagos.
Prosecutors said the convicts played key roles in a syndicate that unlawfully accessed computer systems and recruited Nigerian youths to impersonate foreign nationals online for financial gain, activities described as a threat to Nigeria’s economic and social stability.
Although no plea bargain was reached, defence counsel Bridget Omateno informed the court that the duo opted to change their pleas from not guilty to guilty. Following their admission, EFCC prosecutor Bilkisu Bala-Buhari urged the court to impose the maximum penalty as a deterrent.
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“The prosecution had earlier called two witnesses before the change of plea,” Bala-Buhari told the court, noting that some of the charges carry life imprisonment.
Beyond the prison terms, the court granted the Federal Government’s request for the forfeiture of assets recovered during the investigation, exposing the scale of the alleged operation.
Items forfeited include 1,596 mobile phones, 2,120 office chairs, 544 office tables, 194 routers, 43 computer systems, a network server, 126 air-conditioning units, generators, vehicles, hundreds of mattresses and bunk beds, and thousands of SIM cards across various networks.
The equipment was recovered from multiple high-end locations in Victoria Island and Ikoyi, Lagos.
According to the charges, the defendants retained $1,262,000 USDT in a Binance wallet and $1,300,203 USDT in a Bybit wallet, alongside N3.4 billion allegedly warehoused in Genting International’s Union Bank account between August and December 2024.
The prosecution further alleged that N913.9 million was transferred to an associate, Duliang Pan, who remains at large, and N106.95 million to Lagos Oriental Hotel Limited.
A third defendant, Audu Friday, maintained his not guilty plea and will proceed to trial.
Proceedings are also continuing against Friday and the company on separate charges, including alleged unlawful foreign exchange transactions and failure to comply with statutory anti-money laundering declarations.
The judgment underscores growing judicial and regulatory scrutiny of cross-border cybercrime networks exploiting Nigeria’s financial system and vulnerable youths for global fraud operations.
