INTERPOL’s Operation Jackal IV made 58 arrests and exposed global networks laundering money from scams, fraud and sextortion.

INTERPOL announced that Operation Jackal IV, running from November 2025 to June 2026, led to 58 arrests and identified 263 suspects tied to West African organized crime networks, groups like Black Axe that are responsible for a huge share of the world’s romance scams, crypto fraud, and business email compromise (BEC) schemes.

“Operation Jackal IV (November 2025 – June 2026) aimed to disrupt money laundering, identify high-value targets, seize assets, and support arrests and prosecution.” Interpol announced. “The operation, which brought together 22 countries from six continents, is a response to the escalating global threat posed by West African criminal networks – such as the Black Axe and other similar groups. These groups are responsible for a significant share of the world’s cyber-enabled financial fraud, typically through romance scams, cryptocurrency and investment scams or business email compromise fraud, as well as other serious and violent crimes.”

The goal wasn’t to chase individual scammers. Investigators followed the money behind the scams: shell companies, mule accounts and criminal services that help move and hide stolen funds. Tomonobu Kaya of INTERPOL’s Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre explained the approach: By following illicit financial flows across borders, we are attacking the very lifeblood of organized crime.

Argentina turned up one of the operation’s biggest finds. Investigators identified 196 individuals connected to a crime-as-a-service network suspected of supplying website domains and laundering support specifically for West African criminal groups, resulting in 17 arrests. INTERPOL sent an Operational Support Team to help analyze seized data and map out the wider network of suspects, the kind of cross-border analytical work that individual national police forces usually can’t pull off on their own.

South African authorities raided seven locations in Johannesburg linked to a group running romance and investment scams against retirees in English-speaking countries.

The syndicate assigned members to specific roles, such as “conversion” and “retention” agents. The operation led to 39 arrests, $2.67 million seized and 257 bank accounts frozen, the largest number of arrests in the operation.

Italy’s case shows how much damage a single laundering account can absorb. One individual was tied to a pan-European laundering network moving money through shell companies and remittance services, and investigators traced €845,000 laundered through a single account across 560 separate transactions using 20 different financial instruments. That’s not a careless operator; that’s someone who understood exactly how to fragment a large sum into a pattern designed to look unremarkable at every individual step.

Romania’s case was the biggest by dollar value, and arguably the most brutal in its simplicity. A call center ran a fake investment scheme promising big returns on stocks and crypto, funneling victims’ money into wallets the operators controlled, and by the time authorities dismantled it, the estimated theft and laundering total had climbed to around €143 million globally. Eleven arrests and roughly €379,000 in cash and crypto seized, plus six properties and several luxury watches, is a real result, but it’s a fraction of what actually got stolen.

“Beyond individual cases, Operation Jackal IV also enabled the analysis of critical and emerging trends, including a rise in West African organized crime groups using sextortion to target minors, with victims as young as 14. Offenders typically contact minors via social media, build trust and coerce them into sharing explicit images or videos.” concludes INTERPOL. “They then threaten to distribute this material to the victim’s contacts unless a ransom is paid.”

The report’s darkest finding sits outside any single country’s arrest count. INTERPOL flagged a rising trend of these same criminal networks using sextortion against minors as young as 14, building trust through social media before coercing victims into sharing explicit images and then threatening to distribute that material unless a ransom gets paid. Some of these groups were even observed buying crime-as-a-service support through the dark web specifically to outsource pieces of that operation, treating exploitation infrastructure as just another service line alongside laundering and fraud.

That’s the uncomfortable throughline connecting every case here: these aren’t scattered opportunists, they’re networks running organized business models with specialized roles, outsourced services, and financial engineering sophisticated enough to move hundreds of millions across borders. Twenty-two countries coordinating for eight months produced real numbers, real arrests, real frozen accounts. It also produced a fairly clear picture of how much more organized this side of cybercrime has become, and how much further there is to go.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, Operation Jackal)

An eight-month international operation targeting West African organized crime groups has resulted in 58 arrests and the identification of 263 suspects across 22 countries, according to INTERPOL. Operation Jackal IV, conducted from November 2025 to June 2026, focused on disrupting criminal networks, tracing illicit funds, identifying high-value targets and supporting arrests and prosecutions. The operation brought together countries across six continents to tackle the growing global threat posed by West African criminal networks, including Black Axe and similar groups. These networks have been linked to a significant share of global cyber-enabled financial fraud, including romance scams, cryptocurrency and investment scams, and business email compromise fraud.

Operation Jackal IV Targets West African Organized Crime Groups

Operation Jackal IV also targeted money laundering activities used to move and conceal criminal proceeds across borders. INTERPOL coordinated cross-border intelligence sharing, analysis and operational support during the operation. It also provided specialized training to strengthen international investigations into financial crime. Tomonobu Kaya, Director of the INTERPOL Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre, said the operation showed the importance of international cooperation in following illicit financial flows and disrupting criminal networks. [caption id="attachment_113806" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Image Source: INTERPOL[/caption]

Major Arrests and Financial Crime Investigations

In Argentina, authorities identified 196 individuals linked to a major Crime-as-a-Service network suspected of providing website domains and money laundering support to West African organized crime groups. The investigation resulted in 17 arrests, with an INTERPOL Operational Support Team assisting with analysis of seized data and identification of suspects and criminal networks. South African authorities raided seven locations in Johannesburg linked to a syndicate involved in romance and investment scams targeting retirees in English-speaking countries. Investigators arrested 39 people, seized USD 2.67 million and blocked 257 bank accounts. In Italy, investigators identified an individual connected to a pan-European money laundering network that used shell companies, remittance services and cash withdrawals. One account processed EUR 845,000, or about USD 736,000, through 560 transactions involving 20 financial instruments. Romanian authorities dismantled a criminal group operating an investment scam through a call centre. The group promoted high returns from stocks and cryptocurrencies, with victims' money transferred to electronic wallets controlled by perpetrators. Authorities estimated that EUR 143 million had been stolen and laundered globally. Eleven people were arrested, while cash, cryptocurrency, six real estate properties and luxury watches were seized.

Sextortion and Crime-as-a-Service Emerge

Beyond individual investigations, the operation highlighted emerging threats involving sextortion and Crime-as-a-Service. INTERPOL identified an increase in West African organized crime groups using sextortion to target minors, including victims as young as 14. In these cases, offenders typically contacted minors through social media, established trust and persuaded them to share explicit images or videos. They then threatened to distribute the material to the victim's contacts unless a ransom was paid. Investigators also found that some criminal syndicates were procuring Crime-as-a-Service from external providers, including through the dark web. These services were used to outsource activities such as money laundering and other operational functions. While several cases from Operation Jackal IV remain under investigation, the preliminary results demonstrate the scale and international reach of the networks targeted during the eight-month operation. The participating countries were Austria, Argentina, Australia, Canada, Côte d'Ivoire, France, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

U.S. authorities have charged two New York residents, including Zhuoying Chen, in connection with an alleged Chinese money laundering network accused of laundering at least $43 million generated through cyber investment fraud schemes. The indictment, unsealed in Brooklyn, alleges the operation ran between 2020 and 2022 and involved an extensive network of shell companies and bank accounts.  According to prosecutors, Zhuoying Chen, 27, of Brooklyn, and Haojie Zhang, 38, of Queens, managed more than a dozen individuals across Brooklyn and Queens. The group allegedly opened 140 bank accounts under approximately 45 shell companies to move proceeds from fraudulent investment scams before transferring the funds to co-conspirators based in China.  Authorities said the investment fraud schemes began with perpetrators contacting victims through messaging platforms and social media. They allegedly built trust over time, persuaded victims to invest in seemingly lucrative opportunities, displayed fake profits to encourage additional investments, and ultimately stole the victims' money. 

Officials Vow Crackdown on Chinese Money Laundering Operations 

Commenting on the Chinese money laundering case, Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva said, "As alleged in the indictment, the defendants laundered fraud proceeds, enabling scammers to continue to victimize Americans and deprive them of their hard-earned money." He added that dismantling Chinese money laundering networks supporting investment fraud is critical to protecting Americans and that the Criminal Division "will relentlessly pursue the financial networks that fuel and profit from these fraud schemes."  U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York described the defendants as "key members of a sophisticated money laundering network" that allegedly routed more than $40 million in victim funds to bank accounts in China. He said the office would continue pursuing individuals involved in investment fraud targeting vulnerable victims.  FBI New York Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. stated that the operation allegedly laundered more than $40 million from American victims before depositing the funds into Chinese accounts overseas. He said the FBI remains committed to working with federal partners to dismantle such fraud networks.  Acting Executive Associate Director John A. Condon of Homeland Security Investigations said the two Chinese nationals allegedly operated the illicit network for nearly two years, laundering victims' life savings. IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Harry T. Chavis Jr. said the indictment demonstrates that "justice is coming" for fraudsters, while U.S. Postal Inspection Service Inspector in Charge Ketty Larco-Ward noted that investment fraud schemes exploit victims' trust through false promises of returns. 

Investigation and Legal Proceedings Continue 

The conspiracy to commit money laundering charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The investigation is being conducted by FBI New York, HSI New York, IRS Criminal Investigation New York, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The prosecution is being led by Trial Attorneys Claire Galasso, David Ginensky, and Adrienne Rosen, along with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Weintraub and David Berman.  The case also forms part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative established under Executive Order 14159. Officials emphasized that an indictment is only an allegation, and Zhuoying Chen and the co-defendant are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.