30 months behind bars: Nigerian pays for US email fraud

A US federal court has sentenced Nigerian national Edikan Adiakpan to 30 months in prison for his role in a business email fraud scheme targeting American companies, Vanguard reports.

The US Department of Justice disclosed this in a statement from the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. Adiakpan, 35, a Houston resident, pleaded guilty on May 12 to illegally transmitting proceeds from an email fraud scheme. Judge Andrew Hanen also ordered three years of supervised release.

Prosecutors said Adiakpan ran Akama Lifestyle, which he advertised as a luxury car service. Between 2020 and 2022, he used it to move money from fraudsters in exchange for a percentage. The scheme targeted more than 10 victims, with fraudsters impersonating legitimate suppliers and creditors to trick businesses into paying fake bank accounts.

One victim, a small utility trailer company in Mississippi, transferred $927,080 to the fraudsters. Adiakpan deposited and redeemed cashier’s cheques worth $359,000 from the company.

The department said he had temporary legal status in the US when he was arrested. Another Nigerian, Ayobami Omoniyi, 27, was sentenced on March 24 to 32 months in prison for his part in the scheme.

The FBI’s Houston Field Office and the IRS Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.