Six Nigerians accused of romance scams to be extradited to the US

South African police are handing over six Nigerians wanted in the US for alleged online romance scams to FBI agents later on Friday.

The group is accused of targeting over 100 women in the US and defrauding them of more than 100m rand ($6m; £5m), the South African authorities said.

Those being extradited were arrested in 2021 and are believed to be members of crime syndicate Black Axe - a Nigerian mafia-style gang tied to human trafficking, internet fraud and murder.

Some of their reported victims included pensioners and businesspeople "who were targeted through sophisticated online relationships used to defraud them of their money", according to South Africa's elite Hawks police unit.

The group will be "transported from a correctional facility in Cape Town" to the airport on Friday morning, where they will be "handed over to officials from the FBI and the United States Secret Service", Hawks spokesperson Colonel Katlego Mogale said in a statement.

They would face wire fraud and money-laundering charges upon their arrival in the US, she added.

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Black Axe is a shadowy criminal network known for its extreme violence and operates across Africa, Europe and North America.