Follow Us on Google
Two Nigerians living in the United States have been sentenced to a combined 189 months in federal prison for their involvement in an international cyber fraud scheme that targeted businesses and caused losses of more than $2.4 million.
The defendants, Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu and Harafat Mogaji, were sentenced on September 25, 2026, following their convictions in the United States.
Both men were residents of Delaware and members of the US Air Force when the offences were committed.
The US Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, David Waterman, announced the sentences in a statement issued through the district’s Public Information Officer, MacKenzie Tubbs.
According to the statement, Odimegwu and Mogaji worked with other conspirators in the US and abroad to target businesses over a period of nearly two years.
The group allegedly used mass email campaigns and phishing attacks to obtain employees’ usernames and passwords, which were then used to facilitate fraudulent wire transfers.
The conspirators also allegedly created email addresses designed to resemble those of businesses and their legitimate partners. The spoofed accounts were used to deceive victims into sending genuine payments to bank accounts controlled by the fraud network.
Tubbs said Odimegwu and Mogaji were involved in diverting more than $1.68 million that a victim in Iowa City had transferred to an account in Chicago controlled by the conspiracy.
The pair were also linked to the diversion of more than $720,000 sent by an Ohio victim to an account controlled by the group.
Other News
“These are in addition to many other attempts Odimegwu and Mogaji made to divert wire transfers made by businesses in Iowa and across the country,” Tubbs said.
The investigation also found that the defendants allegedly collected sensitive financial information during their phishing and spamming activities.
The information included bank account numbers, personal identification numbers and credit and debit card details.
According to the US Attorney’s Office, the stolen data included credit card information belonging to a non-profit organisation in Pella, Iowa.
Odimegwu and Mogaji also allegedly obtained stolen financial information from other members of the conspiracy, exchanged the data among themselves and attempted to use it for unauthorised transactions and purchases.
Odimegwu was sentenced to 111 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $366,617.59 in restitution.
Mogaji received a 78-month prison sentence and was ordered to pay $995,680.45 in restitution.
Authorities took both men into custody after sentencing.
Following their release from prison, Odimegwu and Mogaji will each serve three years under supervised release, according to the US Attorney’s Office.
