Ugandan Held in Rwanda over Alleged Hack Attempt at Equity Bank

An unidentified Ugandan is among eight suspects arrested by Rwandan authorities on charges related to cyber fraud, Chimp Corps report.

Rwanda Investigations Bureau (RIB) says it arrested “an organized group of 8 Kenyans, 3 Rwandans and 1 Ugandan over a cyber-fraud attempt on Equity bank Rwanda.”

However, RIB says this group was arrested “while in the process of hacking into the bank system to steal money from clients’ accounts.”

The investigations bureau said the suspects “came to Rwanda after successfully defrauding Equity Bank both in Kenya and Uganda.”

RIB did not provide more specifics about the case. Neither were the identities of suspects revealed.

ChimpReports was yet to obtain feedback from Uganda’s Foreign Affairs Ministry on the identity of the arrested Ugandan.

Prosecutors say the offences cover breach of confidentiality and misuse of data.

The suspects are expected to appear before courts of law this coming week.

Rwandan media platforms quoted Equity Bank officials as saying no money was lost in the attempted hacking.

Cases of cybercrimes have been on the rise in Rwanda, costing the economy Rwf6bn in 2018.

At least 113 cases of cybercrimes of which 64 were committed in the City of Kigali were recorded in 2018.