Mustapha Raji, Business Email Compromise and Money Laundering, New York 2019

Florida Man Convicted in $1.7 Million Business Email Compromise and Money Laundering Scheme

A Florida man has been convicted of participating in a $1.7 million business email compromise and money laundering scheme that targeted a Manhattan hedge fund. Mustapha Raji, 52, of Hollywood, Florida, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of wire fraud, one count of receipt of stolen property, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The scheme involved a phishing and email fraud campaign that compromised the business email account of a hedge fund founder in New York in July 2018. The compromise resulted in the fraudulent diversion of a $1.7 million wire transfer from the hedge fund to a corporate bank account used to facilitate the scheme. Raji, who was a registered officer of the company that received the stolen funds, fabricated documents to cover up the fraudulent transfer of funds from the hedge fund and directed a co-conspirator to launder the stolen funds to other co-conspirators domestically and overseas.

Raji took a $50,000 cut for his participation in the scheme. He was previously arrested on December 20, 2019. The scheme was an international effort, with Raji working with others to conduct phishing and email fraud campaigns.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in bringing the case to fruition. The case is being handled by the Office's Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit.

Raji is scheduled to be sentenced before Judge Jesse M. Furman on January 11, 2023, at 3:15 p.m. The maximum potential sentences for the charges are 20 years in prison for the conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud counts, 10 years in prison for the receipt of stolen property count, and 20 years in prison for the conspiracy to commit money laundering count.

The $1.7 million in stolen funds is a significant loss for the hedge fund and its investors. The conviction of Raji and others involved in the scheme serves as a warning to those who would engage in similar activities.

The case highlights the importance of vigilance in protecting against business email compromise and money laundering schemes. It also underscores the commitment of law enforcement to holding those responsible accountable for their crimes.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/florida-man-convicted-business-email-compromise-and-money-laundering-scheme-targeting