U.S. jails Nigerian, Ridwan Adeleke Adepoju for fraud

A Nigerian national, Ridwan Adepoju, has been sentenced to 43 months in a U.S. federal prison for his role in a cybercrime scheme that defrauded numerous American citizens and businesses.

The U.S. Department of Justice revealed this in a statement on Sunday.

According to the statement, Adepoju and his co-conspirators orchestrated a variety of scams from Nigeria, including phishing schemes, romance scams, and filing fraudulent tax returns.

“A foreign national has been sentenced to three and a half years in federal prison for conducting a variety of cyber fraud schemes that victimised U.S. citizens and businesses,” the statement read.

“Ridwan Adeleke Adepoju and co-schemers operated multiple fraud schemes from Nigeria, including phishing scams, romance scams, and the submission of fraudulent tax returns. The scams involved multiple spoofed email addresses, fictional social media personas, and unwitting money mules.”

The statement further disclosed that Ridwan Adepoju had relocated to the United Kingdom, where he was arrested and later extradited to the United States in 2024.

He pleaded guilty in March 2025 to charges of federal wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

“Adepoju’s schemes victimised numerous U.S. citizens and businesses, including individuals and companies in the Chicago area,” it added. “Adepoju, 33, of Lagos, Nigeria, was arrested last year in the United Kingdom and extradited to the United States. He pleaded guilty in March to federal wire fraud and aggravated identity theft charges.”

The sentencing was delivered by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly, who handed down a 43-month prison term.