Terror networks get funds through online channels, ICPC reveals

ABUJA—The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Tuesday warned that money laundering and terrorist financing remain destabilising threats to the country’s economic systems, national security, and democratic institutions.

The ICPC, through its Chairman, Dr. Musa Aliyu, SAN, maintained that the advent of the internet, social media, and artificial intelligence has dramatically altered the landscape of financial crime.

Aliyu, SAN, spoke at a national Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) media outreach programme organised by the Intergovernmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA), in collaboration with the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU).

According to the ICPC Chairman, criminals now launder proceeds across jurisdictions at the click of a button.

“They radicalise and fund extremist networks through anonymous online channels,” he said. “They deploy sophisticated cyber-enabled fraud schemes that target unsuspecting citizens across the length and breadth of our country.

The speed and anonymity that digital technologies afford have made detection far more challenging and the stakes considerably higher.

“But I want to make an important point here: These same technologies, in the right hands, present extraordinary opportunities for us to be several steps ahead of what I will call the crime curve.

“We do not have to be perpetually on the back foot. And it is in this regard that I wish to commend the NFIU for its deployment of advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, and real-time transaction monitoring systems to detect suspicious financial flows with greater precision and speed.

“This is exactly the kind of forward-looking, technology-driven approach that must define our collective response to crime in the twenty-first century. We must not merely react to the crime curve. We must anticipate it.

It is against this backdrop that the role of the media assumes singular importance,” the ICPC Chairman added.

In his opening address at the event, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, acknowledged that money laundering and terrorist financing remain significant threats to the stability of Nigeria’s economy and the West African subregion.

He called for collaborative efforts to tackle the malaise.

“These crimes are often complex, transnational, and constantly evolving, requiring a coordinated, informed, and proactive response from all stakeholders,” Fagbemi, SAN, stated.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria has, over the years, demonstrated unwavering commitment to strengthening its AML/CFT framework through legislative reforms, institutional capacity building, regional and international collaboration, as well as enhanced inter-agency partnership.

We continue to align with global standards and best practices. However, beyond laws and enforcement mechanisms, public awareness and understanding are indispensable in winning this fight

The NFIU’s Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Hafsat Bakari, noted that illicit financial flows often fuel organised crime, corruption, trafficking networks, and violent extremism.

Likewise, GIABA, represented by its Country Director, Mr. Timothy Melaye, urged the media to deepen its narrative in identifying and exposing money laundering.

“More importantly, the media must not allow itself to be used by suspected money launderers and looters of public treasury to truncate the course of justice,” Melaye added.

Culled from vanguard