$10m internet scammer nabbed in Larnaca

A LEBANESE man with a US passport was arrested on an Interpol warrant at Larnaca Airport yesterday on suspicion of running a global internet lottery scam that netted him $10 million.

Ali Mohamed Kdoud, 39, has been wanted by Interpol for two years. He was remanded by the Larnaca Court until his extradition papers are ready. It appears he was hiding out in Cyprus and was arrested as he tried to leave the country yesterday.

Kdoud would send out emails telling people they won a lottery but could not claim their prize until they sent in a deposit. The incoming funds were directed to a bank account in the US.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.