FBI-Wanted Nigerian Extradited to U.S. Over $6 Million Cyber Scam

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has successfully extradited Nigerian national Abiola Kayode from Ghana to Nebraska, United States, in connection with a $6 million cyber scam. The 37-year-old had been on the FBI’s Most Wanted Cyber Criminal List and was indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud in August 2019.

Kayode was apprehended by Ghanaian authorities in April 2023 and later handed over to FBI special agents following a formal extradition request by the U.S. government. Upon arrival in Nebraska, he appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Michael D. Nelson on December 11, 2024, where he was ordered to remain in custody pending trial.

The charges against Kayode stem from his alleged involvement in a Business Email Compromise (BEC) scheme between January 2015 and September 2016. The scheme targeted businesses in Nebraska and other U.S. states, defrauding them of over $6 million. According to prosecutors, the operation involved impersonating business executives to deceive employees into authorizing fraudulent wire transfers.

Kayode and his associates reportedly used fake emails to convince businesses to send funds to accounts they controlled. Many of the bank accounts used in the scheme were linked to victims of internet romance scams who were manipulated into transferring the stolen money.

Several of Kayode’s co-conspirators have already been convicted and sentenced. Among them, Adewale Aniyeloye received 96 months in prison and was ordered to pay $1.57 million in restitution in February 2019. Similarly, Pelumi Fawehinimi was sentenced to 72 months and required to pay $1.01 million in March 2019. In January 2020, Onome Ijomone, extradited from Poland, was sentenced to 60 months with restitution of $508,934. More recently, Alex Ogunshakin was extradited from Nigeria and sentenced to 45 months in prison in October 2024.

FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel emphasized the agency’s commitment to dismantling cyber-criminal networks. He stated, “Four years ago, we identified six Nigerian nationals suspected of defrauding individual victims and businesses in Nebraska and other states of millions of dollars. Today, Abiola Kayode is the second of those co-conspirators to be extradited to stand trial in Nebraska. Our message to the remaining four co-conspirators: we are coming for you.”

Kowel credited the successful extradition to the cooperation between the FBI, the U.S. Department of Justice, and their international law enforcement partners in Ghana, including the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Justice, the Ghana Police Service – INTERPOL, and the Ghana Immigration Service. He reaffirmed the FBI’s commitment to pursuing and prosecuting those involved in cyber fraud and Business Email Compromise schemes.