22 Chinese nationals jailed in Zambia over multinational cybercrimes
- They were part of a group of 77, mostly Zambians, arrested in April over what police called a ‘sophisticated internet fraud syndicate’
A Zambian court on Friday jailed 22 Chinese nationals over cybercrimes that included internet fraud and online scams targeting Zambians and other people from Singapore, Peru and the United Arab Emirates.
The Magistrates Court in the capital, Lusaka, jailed them for periods ranging from seven to 11 years.
The court also fined them between US$1,500 to US$3,000 after they pleaded guilty to charges of computer-related misrepresentation, identity fraud and illegally operating a network or service on Wednesday. A man from Cameroon also received prison sentence and fine on the same changes.
They were part of a group of 77 people, majority of them Zambians, arrested in April over what police described as a “sophisticated internet fraud syndicate”.
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The director general of the drug enforcement commission, Nason Banda, said investigations kicked off after authorities noticed a spike in the number of cyber-related fraud cases and many people complained about inexplicably losing money from their mobile phones or bank accounts.