Hackers Take Over Mayor Aki-Sawyerr’s WhatsApp Account, Use Number to Solicit Funds
Deborah Sorie Freetown Mayor Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr has warned the public that her WhatsApp account was hacked and that her phone number is still being used to send messages and solicit money from people.
Aki-Sawyerr said the account was compromised on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, and urged members of the public to disregard any WhatsApp messages appearing to come from her until she issues another public statement.
“My WhatsApp was hacked on Wednesday 9th September. It has come to my attention that my number is still being used to send messages & illicitly solicit funds,” she said.
The Mayor did not disclose how the account was compromised or whether anyone had already lost money as a result of the fraudulent messages.
Her warning comes amid growing concerns over WhatsApp account takeovers and scams targeting users in Sierra Leone.
In August, National Cybersecurity Coordinator Mariama Yormah warned that criminals were increasingly taking over WhatsApp accounts and using compromised profiles to deceive the victims’ friends, relatives and professional contacts.
Yormah explained that scammers can impersonate trusted contacts and send requests for money, sometimes claiming to be stranded or facing an emergency. She advised members of the public to independently verify unexpected requests before sending money or providing sensitive information.
She also warned users never to share WhatsApp verification codes or two-step verification PINs with anyone. According to the National Cybersecurity Coordinating Centre, criminals may falsely claim that an authentication code has been sent to a person’s phone before asking the victim to forward it.
Once obtained, such information can allow criminals to take control of an account and use it to target the victim’s contacts.
The warning follows previous concerns about WhatsApp scams in Sierra Leone. In June 2025, Deputy Minister of Information and Civic Education Bockarie Abdel-Aziz Bawoh also warned citizens about scammers impersonating meeting organisers and requesting WhatsApp verification codes. He said sharing the code could give hackers access to the account, which could then be used to deceive others.
A Sierra Leone-based cybersecurity advisory published in October 2024 similarly documented account takeovers and scams involving WhatsApp users, including attempts to obtain verification codes through social engineering and impersonation.
More recent international warnings also show that WhatsApp-related fraud continues to evolve. In September 2026, cybersecurity researchers warned about malicious files being distributed through compromised WhatsApp accounts, while consumer protection experts separately highlighted scams involving WhatsApp calls and screen sharing.
The National Cybersecurity Coordinator has encouraged users to activate WhatsApp’s two-step verification, use a unique PIN, link an email address for recovery and regularly check their linked devices for unfamiliar sessions.