PHOENIX, Ariz. – Solomon Ekunke Okpe and Johnson Uke Obogo, Nigerian nationals, have each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire, bank, and mail fraud, officials announced.
The duo was involved in a sophisticated cyber-enabled scheme that spanned from December 2011 to January 2017. Okpe has also confessed to one count of aggravated identity theft.
Both suspects were apprehended at the request of the United States and extradited to Arizona in 2022, after being arrested in Malaysia and the United Kingdom respectively.
Their fraudulent activities targeted victims worldwide, including individuals and local businesses within the District of Arizona. One notable victim was a regional branch of First American Bank, which suffered losses exceeding $1 million.
Okpe and his co-conspirators employed various methods such as business email compromise (BEC), romance scams, and check fraud to steal funds and personal information. They hacked into victims’ email accounts using phishing attacks to gain access to sensitive data.
In addition to the BEC schemes, they engaged in work-from-home scams, where they posed as legitimate employers on job websites, enlisting unsuspecting individuals in fraudulent activities such as setting up bank accounts and cashing counterfeit checks.
U.S. Attorney Gary M. Restaino, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., and FBI Special Agent Joseph E. Carrico led the investigation and prosecution of this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Goertz and Senior Counsel Aarash Haghighat are handling the charges against Okpe and Obogo.
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Key Facts
- State: Arizona
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Cybercrime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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