A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been sentenced to 90 months (7.5 years) in a United States federal prison for his involvement in a large-scale wire fraud and money laundering scheme targeting corporate email systems.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) disclosed in a statement on Saturday that Aliyu was extradited from South Africa to the United States to face charges linked to the cyber-enabled fraud operation. The agency said the scheme involved hacking into business email accounts to facilitate financial theft.
According to ICE, the court also ordered Aliyu to forfeit $1.2 million and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims. He is expected to be deported after completing his prison sentence.
Authorities noted that Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operatives in Maryland worked alongside counterparts in South Africa and other international partners to investigate and dismantle the network behind the fraud.
Details from a U.S. Department of Justice report released in August 2025 revealed that Aliyu, 30, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. He was identified as the last of three principal defendants to admit guilt in the business email compromise (BEC) scheme.
The report further indicated that eight other individuals had previously pleaded guilty in related cases before the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.
U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes described the case as a reflection of the growing sophistication and coordination of cybercrime networks, announcing the development alongside Acting Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella.
Court records show that a federal grand jury initially indicted Aliyu and two co-defendants—Kosi Goodness Simon-Ebo and Henry Onyedikachi Echefu—on June 24, 2019, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. The indictment was unsealed on July 6, 2022, following their arrests abroad and subsequent extradition to the United States.
