Nigerian national Abiola Kayode extradited to the US over $6M fraud, faces charges in Nebraska for conspiracy to commit wire fraud
[dropcap]U[/dropcap]nited States Attorney Susan Lehr has announced the extradition of 37-year-old Nigerian national, Abiola Kayode, to the District of Nebraska to face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
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The indictment, initially filed in Omaha, Nebraska, in August 2019, accuses Kayode of involvement in a sophisticated Business Email Compromise (BEC) scheme that defrauded businesses in Nebraska and beyond of over $6 million.
Kayode was apprehended in Ghana in April 2023 after a request from US authorities.
Following approval of the extradition by Ghanaian officials, Kayode was handed over to FBI agents and subsequently made his initial court appearance on December 11, 2024, before United States Magistrate Judge Michael D. Nelson, who ordered his detention pending trial.
The indictment alleges that between January 2015 and September 2016, Kayode and his co-conspirators executed fraudulent schemes by posing as executives of targeted companies.
Using spoofed email accounts, the perpetrators directed employees to wire funds to bank accounts controlled by the fraudsters. Many of these accounts were held by victims of romance scams, who were coerced into further transferring funds to other fraudulent accounts.
Several of Kayode’s co-conspirators have already been convicted and sentenced. Adewale Aniyeloye, who sent spoofed emails, received 96 months in prison and was ordered to pay over $1.5 million in restitution.
Similarly, Pelumi Fawehinimi, who facilitated bank accounts for the scheme, was sentenced to 72 months with over $1 million in restitution. Onome Ijomone, a romance scammer extradited from Poland, was sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered to pay over $500,000 in restitution. Most recently, Alex Ogunshakin, extradited from Nigeria, received 45 months in prison in October 2024 for his role in providing fraudulent bank accounts.
Special Agent Eugene Kowel of the FBI Omaha office expressed the agency’s commitment to dismantling cybercriminal networks and delivering justice to fraud victims.
He stated, “Four years ago, we identified six Nigerian nationals involved in defrauding individuals and businesses in Nebraska and other states. Today, Abiola Kayode is the second of these co-conspirators to be extradited. To the remaining four: we are coming for you.”
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with critical assistance from the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs and Ghanaian authorities, including INTERPOL and the Ghana Immigration Service.
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An indictment remains an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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