department of justice

Justice Department Indicts 80 People in Massive Online Fraud and Money Laundering Scheme

Two Nigerian citizens are accused of leading a massive fraud scheme that transferred at least $6 million in fraudulently-obtained funds, much of whom was taken from elderly people.

After a years-long investigation, 80 people in the United States and Nigeria have been charged with participating in a “massive conspiracy through a variety of fraud schemes,” including business email compromise (BEC) fraud, romance scams and schemes targeting the elderly, the Justice Department announced Thursday.

Law enforcement had already made several arrests in the case as of Thursday, when the indictment was unsealed. Eleven arrests were made in the Los Angeles region on Thursday morning, while two others were already in federal custody and another person arrested earlier in the week. The remaining defendants are believed to be abroad, with most of them in Nigeria, the department said in a press release.

“Today, we have taken a major step to disrupt criminal networks that use BEC schemes, romance scams and other frauds to fleece victims,” U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said in a statement on Thursday. “This indictment sends a message that we will identify perpetrators – no matter where they reside – and we will cut off the flow of ill-gotten gains.”

Read more: Business-Targeted Email Fraud Sees Huge Increase

Two Nigerian citizens accused of facilitating the bank and money-service accounts to transfer funds were named in the release: Valentine Iro and Chukwudi Christogunus Igbokwe, both of whom lived in California. Once the people involved in the fraud scheme convinced victims to send money under false pretenses, the pair coordinated the receipt of funds and “oversaw an extensive money-laundering network,” the department said.

The indictment and criminal complaint allege that Iro and Igbokwe -- both of whom were arrested on Thursday -- transferred at least $6 million fraudulently-obtained funds and attempted to steal an additional $40 million.

“Today’s announcement highlights the extensive efforts that organized criminal groups will engage in to perpetrate BEC schemes that target American citizens and their hard-earned assets,” said Paul Delacourt, the assistant director in charge at the FBI’s Los Angeles office, in a statement. “Billions of dollars are lost annually, and we urge citizens to be aware of these sophisticated financial schemes to protect themselves or their businesses from becoming unsuspecting victims.”

The FBI has previously warned of the rise of business email compromise attacks, which target email accounts of executives and finance employees who are involved with wire transfer payments. This often happens through phishing emails that require the recipient to click a link.

Each defendant in the indictment was charged with conspiracy to commit fraud, conspiracy to launder money and aggravated identity theft. Several of the people also face fraud and money laundering charges, according to the complaint.

The indictment detailed how Iro and Igbokwe allegedly coordinated the transfer of victims’ funds from a fraudulent bank account they controlled to American bank accounts belonging to criminal money exchangers. The exchangers used a Nigerian banking application to transfer funds from their own accounts to Nigerian accounts specified by Iro and Igbokwe.

“This method was used to transfer millions of dollars to Nigerian co-conspirators without directly transferring funds overseas,” the department said.

Victims of the fraud spanned the globe, including individuals, small and large businesses, and law firms. Some victims lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in the process, including many elderly people, according to the indictment.

"We believe this is one of the largest cases of its kind in U.S. history," Hanna said at a press conference on Thursday.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Progressing in Capabilities

    Progressing in Capabilities

    Hazardous areas within industries like oil and gas, manufacturing, agriculture and the like, have long-sought reliable video surveillance cameras and equipment that can operate safely in these harsh and unpredictable environments. Read Now

  • A Comprehensive Nationwide Solution

    A Comprehensive Nationwide Solution

    Across the United States, manufacturing facilities, distribution centers, truck yards, parking lots and car dealerships all have a common concern. They are targets for catalytic converters. In nearly every region, cases of catalytic converter thefts have skyrocketed. Read Now

  • Planning for Your Perimeter

    Planning for Your Perimeter

    The perimeter is an organization’s first line of defense and a critical element of any security and surveillance program. Even if a building’s interior or exterior security is strong, without a solid perimeter surveillance approach any company or business is vulnerable. Read Now

  • The Key Issue

    The Key Issue

    It is February 2014. A woman is getting ready in her room on a cruise ship when she hears a knock on the door; it is a crewmember delivering breakfast. She is not presentable so she tells him to leave it by the door. Read Now

Featured Cybersecurity

New Products

  • VideoEdge 2U High Capacity Network Video Recorder

    VideoEdge 2U High Capacity Network Video Recorder

    Johnson Controls announces a powerful recording solution to meet demanding requirements with its VideoEdge 2U High Capacity Network Video Recorder. This solution combines the powerful capabilities of victor with the intelligence of VideoEdge NVRs, fueled by Tyco Artificial Intelligence, for video management that provides actionable insights to save time, money and lives. 3

  • CyberAudit Introduced to Manage Systems, Intuitive Interface

    CyberAudit Web

    CyberLock, Inc. announces the release of CyberAudit Web 9.4! CyberAudit-Web (CAW), the software suite for managing CyberLock systems, provides an intuitive interface to assign keys, set expirations, monitor staff and configure access schedules. 3

  • HID Signo Readers

    HID Signo Readers

    HID Global has announced its HID® Signo™ Biometric Reader 25B that is designed to capture and read fingerprints in real-world applications and conditions. 3