Two former Nigerian US Air Force members sentenced in cyber-intrusion case

Two Nigerians who previously served in the United States Air Force have been sentenced to a combined 15 years and nine months for their roles in an international cyber-intrusion scheme, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa said. Chijioke Odimegwu, 25, and Harafat Mogaji, 26, both lived in Delaware and were sentenced last Friday, according to a press statement issued by the office on Tuesday. Public documents said the men and their co-conspirators spent nearly two years targeting businesses across the United States.

Prosecutors said they tricked victims into releasing confidential information and then used stolen credentials and spoofed email addresses to impersonate victims or business partners. The group allegedly redirected payments between businesses and their trusted partners to accounts controlled by its members. The prosecution said more than $1.68m sent by a victim in Iowa City was diverted to a Chicago bank account linked to the conspiracy.

A further $720,000 wire transfer from an Ohio victim was allegedly redirected to an account controlled by the group. The release said the defendants also made many other attempts to divert business payments in Iowa and elsewhere in the country. According to the attorney’s office, Odimegwu and Mogaji fraudulently obtained financial information, including account numbers, identification numbers and credit and debit card details.

Odimegwu received a 111-month prison sentence and was ordered to pay $366,617.59 in restitution. Mogaji was sentenced to 78 months and ordered to pay $995,680.45. Both were taken into custody after sentencing and will each serve three years of supervised release after leaving prison.