A Nigerian man’s charity scam case has resulted in an eight-year federal prison sentence in the United States…
The United States Department of Justice announced the sentence on Friday, August 28, 2026, following a federal prosecution that involved investigators and law enforcement agencies in both the United States and Ghana.
Olusegun Adejorin was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang to 96 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
He was convicted of wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and unauthorised access to a protected computer to obtain information.
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Nigerian man convicted after six-day trial
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Adejorin was extradited from Ghana to the United States in August 2024 to face the charges.
His case subsequently went to trial, and in December 2025, a federal jury convicted him of all the charges following a six-day trial.
The prosecution alleged that Adejorin was responsible for a carefully organised fraud scheme targeting two charitable organisations.
The case demonstrates how cybercriminals can exploit trusted communication channels, employee identities and business relationships to carry out large-scale financial fraud.
How the $7.5 million scam worked
Evidence presented during the trial showed that Adejorin carried out the scheme between June and August 2020.
One of the victims was a Maryland-based charitable organisation that provided investment services to other organisations.
The second victim was a charitable organisation based in New York.
According to prosecutors, Adejorin gained unauthorised access to employee email accounts and used the compromised accounts to impersonate legitimate employees.
He allegedly used the identities of employees to persuade the organisations to approve fraudulent financial transactions.
One of the key elements of the scheme involved the creation of spoofed domain names.
These domains were designed to resemble legitimate addresses associated with the organisations, making the fraudulent communications appear genuine.
Adejorin allegedly used the spoofed domains to impersonate employees of the New York-based organisation and request withdrawals of its funds from the Maryland organisation.
Fraudulent emails helped authorise transfers
Investigators said Adejorin also gained fraudulent access to email accounts belonging to the Maryland organisation.
Those accounts were allegedly used to send emails falsely confirming withdrawal requests that had been made in the name of the New York charity.
The fraudulent communications allegedly gave the appearance that the financial transactions had been properly authorised.
As a result, more than $7.5 million belonging to the New York organisation was transferred from the Maryland organisation to bank accounts that were not controlled by the legitimate charity.
The scale of the loss made the case one of the more significant business email compromise prosecutions handled by federal authorities.
Extradited from Ghana to the United States
Adejorin’s prosecution also involved extensive international cooperation.
The FBI extradited him from Ghana to the United States in August 2024 after authorities worked through the necessary legal procedures.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs collaborated with Ghana’s International Cooperation Unit of the Office of the Attorney-General to secure his extradition.
U.S. authorities also acknowledged the assistance provided by several Ghanaian institutions during the investigation.
These included the Economic and Organised Crime Office, Ghana Immigration Service, Ghana Police Service through INTERPOL, the National Intelligence Bureau and the Ghana office of the FBI Legal Attaché.
The cooperation demonstrates the increasingly international nature of financial cybercrime investigations.
Eight-year prison sentence
Following his conviction, Judge Theodore Chuang sentenced Adejorin to 96 months in federal prison.
He will also serve three years of supervised release after completing his prison sentence.
The sentence reflects the seriousness of the offences, which involved identity theft, unauthorised computer access and the fraudulent movement of millions of dollars.
U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes announced the sentence alongside Jimmy Paul, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Baltimore Field Office.
Hayes commended investigators and international partners for their work in bringing the case to court.
Warning about business email compromise
The case highlights the growing danger posed by business email compromise schemes.
Such schemes often involve criminals impersonating executives, employees, suppliers or other trusted individuals to convince organisations to transfer money or disclose sensitive information.
Spoofed websites, fake email addresses and compromised accounts can make fraudulent instructions appear legitimate.
Charities and other organisations that regularly handle large financial transactions can become attractive targets because of the amount of money moving through their accounts.
The Adejorin case demonstrates that such fraud can result in serious criminal consequences, particularly when large sums of money and multiple forms of cybercrime are involved.
As international authorities continue to strengthen cooperation against financial crimes, investigators are increasingly able to trace suspects across borders.
For Adejorin, the investigation ultimately resulted in extradition from Ghana, a federal trial in the United States and an eight-year prison sentence.
The case also underscores the importance of strong cybersecurity practices, employee verification procedures and safeguards around major financial transactions.
Read the official case announcement on the U.S. Department of Justice website.
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