The Nigeria Police Force, working in close collaboration with the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, has smashed a sophisticated examination malpractice syndicate operating during the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination at the College of Education, Warri, Delta State.

Security sources said the operation was triggered by intelligence reports suggesting that organised criminal groups were attempting to compromise the nationwide computer-based test through technology-driven fraud. Investigators traced unusual digital footprints indicating that external actors were gaining access to candidates’ systems while the examination was in progress.

Police cybercrime specialists and JAMB technical teams reportedly launched a joint probe, deploying digital forensics to track the source of the intrusions. Their findings showed that unauthorized remote access tools had been installed on some of the computers used for the test, allowing questions and answers to be intercepted and relayed in real time.

Acting on these leads, operatives carried out coordinated raids in Warri and surrounding areas, arresting three suspects alleged to be at the centre of the scheme. The suspects are said to include a suspected IT handler and two collaborators believed to have brokered access between desperate candidates and the syndicate.

Police sources disclosed that the suspects are in custody and are providing information expected to expose a wider network of accomplices, including possible insiders at examination centres. More arrests are anticipated as investigators analyse seized devices, communication records, and financial transactions linked to the operation.

Further investigations have already pointed to other centres believed to have engaged in similar malpractice. In response, JAMB has withdrawn the results of candidates from the affected centres, pending the outcome of the probe. The examination body has assured that genuine candidates caught in the web of the scandal will be rescheduled for a mop-up examination once the centres are cleared or alternative venues are secured.

Confirming the development, Force spokesperson DCP Anthony Placid warned candidates, centre owners, and their collaborators that the era of high-tech cheating is being met with equally advanced law-enforcement capabilities. He stressed that the police are determined to dismantle criminal networks targeting national examinations and to protect the credibility of Nigeria’s educational assessment system.