A Bronx man has pleaded guilty to participating in a multimillion-dollar Ghana-based fraud scheme involving business email compromises and romance scams targeting the elderly.
Muftau Adamu, a/k/a ‘Muftau Adams,’ a/k/a ‘Muftau Iddrissu,’ pled guilty on [no date specified] to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the scheme that stole over $10 million from U.S. businesses and individuals across the United States, including in the Southern District of New York, between 2014 and 2018.
Adamu is the fifth defendant to plead guilty in the case. Four other defendants – Tourey Ahmed Rufai, a/k/a ‘Joe Thompson,’ a/k/a ‘Joe Terry,’ a/k/a ‘Rufai A Tourey,’ a/k/a ‘Ahmed Rufai Tourey,’ Prince Nana Aggrey, Abdul Rashid Masoud, and Mubarak Baturi, a/k/a ‘Eben Karsah,’ were arrested in 2018 and also pled guilty earlier this year.
The conspiracy involved the theft of millions of dollars through business email compromises and romance scams targeting the elderly. The defendants created email accounts with slight variations of email accounts used by employees of a victim company or third party, tricking businesses into wiring funds into accounts controlled by the Enterprise.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said, “These five defendants admitted to participating in a conspiracy that involved stealing millions of dollars from U.S. businesses and individuals across the United States and laundering that money to their co-conspirators in Ghana through a network of bank accounts in the Bronx, many of which were opened using fake names and businesses.
The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote. Adamu pled guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox.
Adamu is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News