INTERPOL has published the results of Operation First Light 2026, a global anti-fraud operation targeting social engineering scams and related money laundering between 15 January 2026 and 30 April 2026. The operation involved 97 countries and territories and resulted in 5,811 arrests, the interception of USD 293 million in illicit assets and the identification of more than 142,000 victims worldwide. The campaign covered scams including business email compromise, sextortion, romance, impersonation and investment fraud. After an initial intelligence-sharing phase, participating authorities carried out more than three months of operational activity against high-value targets. Measures included raids, blocking or freezing bank accounts and virtual wallets, requests for INTERPOL Notices and Diffusions, and use of INTERPOL’s Global Rapid Intervention of Payments stop-payment mechanism to halt illicit fiat and virtual-asset flows. Across the operation, authorities analyzed 152,808 cases, solved 23,715 cases, identified 15,606 suspects, blocked 31,014 bank accounts and issued 99 Notices and Diffusions. Case examples highlighted the range of conduct targeted. In Eswatini, police arrested 82 people and dismantled a network linked to illegal online gambling, money laundering and impersonation scams, prompting deployment of an INTERPOL Operational Support Team to help analyze seized digital evidence. In Thailand, police uncovered a romance-scam laundering scheme involving cross-chain cryptocurrency swaps, with one suspect’s wallet processing more than USD 122.5 million in 10 months, while authorities in Singapore and Oman used I-GRIP to block a USD 6.6 million transfer tied to a business email compromise case.

Original source Back to tracker