INTERPOL has reported 58 arrests, 263 identified suspects and $2.67 million in seized assets following a 22-country operation targeting cryptocurrency investment scams, romance fraud and money laundering networks.
According to an official INTERPOL release published on Aug. 25, Operation Jackal IV ran for eight months, from November 2025 through June 2026. The operation focused on financial systems used by organized crime groups in West Africa.
Authorities from 22 countries across six continents participated, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Argentina, Nigeria, Romania and several European countries.
Investigators targeted groups such as Black Axe and similar criminal organizations accused of operating romance scams, fake cryptocurrency investment schemes, business email fraud and other financial crimes. Police also traced the shell companies, bank accounts, digital wallets and external service providers allegedly used to receive or conceal stolen funds.
INTERPOL supported the operation by helping agencies exchange intelligence across borders, analyze financial activity and coordinate enforcement actions. It also provided specialist training for investigators handling money laundering cases.
“By following illicit financial flows across borders, we are attacking the very lifeblood of organized crime and making it increasingly difficult for criminal networks to profit from their activities,” said Tomonobu Kaya, director of the INTERPOL Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre.
Operation Jackal IV leads to 58 arrests
Operation Jackal IV resulted in 58 arrests and identified another 263 people suspected of links to the targeted criminal networks, INTERPOL said.
In Argentina, federal police uncovered a Crime-as-a-Service network suspected of providing website domains and money laundering support to West African crime groups. Investigators identified 196 people connected to the operation and arrested 17 suspects.
An INTERPOL Operational Support Team assisted Argentine authorities in examining seized information. The team analyzed the material for connections among suspects, criminal groups and overseas partners while helping local investigators develop further leads.
South African authorities carried out the operation’s largest reported enforcement action, arresting 39 people during raids at seven locations in Johannesburg. Police linked the sites to a group accused of running romance and investment scams targeting retirees in English-speaking countries.
According to INTERPOL, members of the network handled different stages of the fraud. Some worked as “conversion” agents, while others served as “retention” agents. These roles involved turning initial contacts into paying victims and persuading existing victims to continue sending money.
Police seized $2.67 million, blocked 257 bank accounts and collected evidence during the Johannesburg raids. An INTERPOL support team also assisted South African investigators in examining the network’s financial and international links.
INTERPOL’s release lists 17 arrests in Argentina and 39 in South Africa, accounting for 56 of the 58 arrests stated in its headline total. However, the same release separately reports 11 arrests in Romania, bringing the country-level figures mentioned in the statement to 67. INTERPOL did not explain whether the Romanian arrests were included in the headline figure or represented the result of a connected investigation.
Romanian crypto investment scam allegedly moved €143 million
Romanian police dismantled a call center accused of promising investors large returns from stocks and cryptocurrencies. INTERPOL said suspects redirected victims’ deposits to electronic wallets they controlled instead of placing the funds in legitimate investments.
Investigators estimated that the group stole and laundered approximately €143 million worldwide. Police arrested 11 people and seized about €330,000 in cash and cryptocurrency, six properties and several luxury watches.
In Italy, investigators identified one person suspected of involvement in a money laundering network operating across Europe. According to INTERPOL, the network used shell companies, remittance services and cash withdrawals to conceal the origin of funds.
The agency said a single bank account processed €845,000 through 560 transactions involving 20 financial instruments. Investigators did not report an arrest in the Italian case, which remained focused on identifying one suspect.
Operation Jackal IV also found that some West African crime groups were purchasing Crime-as-a-Service tools from external providers, often through dark web markets. INTERPOL said these arrangements allowed fraud groups to outsource website infrastructure, money laundering and other technical services rather than managing every part of their operations themselves.
In July, crypto.news reported on another INTERPOL operation that resulted in 5,811 arrests and the interception of $293 million in illicit assets across 97 countries and territories. Operation First Light also identified more than 142,000 victims and blocked over 31,000 bank accounts while targeting romance scams, investment fraud and related money laundering.
Thai police uncovered a cryptocurrency laundering network during that earlier operation. INTERPOL said one wallet processed more than $122.5 million over 10 months. Investigators alleged that the network moved proceeds from romance scams through several digital assets and used cross-chain swaps to make the funds more difficult to trace.
U.S. authorities pursue overseas crypto scam proceeds
The United States was among the 22 countries participating in Operation Jackal IV, although INTERPOL’s release did not describe a specific U.S. arrest or asset seizure connected to the operation.
American authorities have separately pursued overseas networks accused of targeting U.S. residents with similar romance and cryptocurrency investment schemes. In July, the Department of Justice sought the forfeiture of $25 million in cryptocurrency recovered through five investigations involving suspected victims in the United States and Canada.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the five cases involved fake cryptocurrency platforms and laundering networks linked to China, Malaysia and Cambodia. Prosecutors said the DOJ’s Scam Center Strike Force had seized more than $800 million since its creation in November 2025.
One investigation involved more than 270 suspected victim transfers and approximately $10.4 million in cryptocurrency. Another covered over 200 romance scam victims and $12.1 million in assets. Under the civil forfeiture process, eligible victims may seek compensation if courts approve the government’s claims to the recovered funds.
During a separate enforcement action in June, Coinbase froze over $3 million in cryptocurrency tied to alleged Southeast Asian scam networks. The exchange worked with the DOJ, Meta, Microsoft, Starlink and overseas law enforcement agencies to identify financial transfers and online infrastructure linked to romance and investment fraud.
Meta disabled more than 1.4 million accounts, pages and groups connected to suspected scams, while Microsoft suspended about 20,000 accounts. Starlink terminated service for thousands of internet kits associated with suspected unlawful activity, and the Royal Thai Police arrested 63 people linked to scam operations.
