An international crackdown on West African organised crime networks, including the Black Axe group, has resulted in the identification of 263 suspects and the arrest of 58 people across 22 countries.
INTERPOL disclosed the results of Operation Jackal IV in a statement published on its website on Tuesday.
The operation was coordinated by INTERPOL and conducted between November 2025 and June 2026, targeting criminal networks involved in cyber-enabled fraud, financial crime and violent crime.
Law enforcement agencies from 22 countries across six continents participated in the operation, which focused on identifying key suspects, tracing illicit financial flows, recovering criminal proceeds and supporting prosecutions.
The networks targeted were linked to a range of financial crimes, including romance scams, cryptocurrency and investment fraud, as well as business email compromise schemes.
INTERPOL said the operation was launched in response to the growing international reach of West African criminal networks, particularly Black Axe and other groups involved in cyber-enabled fraud and violent crime.
Nigeria was among the participating countries, alongside Austria, Argentina, Australia, Canada, Côte d’Ivoire, France, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Tomonobu Kaya, Director of INTERPOL’s Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre, said the operation showed the importance of cross-border cooperation in tackling organised crime.
“Operation Jackal IV demonstrates the power of international cooperation. By following illicit financial flows across borders, we are attacking the very lifeblood of organised crime and making it increasingly difficult for criminal networks to profit from their activities,” Kaya said.
INTERPOL said the operation underscored the increasingly transnational nature of West African organised crime, with criminal networks exploiting international borders and financial systems to expand their activities and conceal illicit proceeds.
The organisation stressed that sustained cooperation between law enforcement agencies would be crucial to disrupting criminal networks, dismantling their financial infrastructure and bringing perpetrators to justice.
