A United States Department of Justice (DOJ) official has detailed how a Nigerian man, Farouk Adekunle Adepoju, allegedly stole $235,000 (about N363 million) from a US university using fake emails while living in the United Kingdom
According to prosecutors, Adepoju hacked into the email system of a Pennsylvania-based construction company contracted by the university, then created spoofed accounts to impersonate staff and redirect payments.
The DOJ said Adepoju was arrested in the UK on September 15, 2025, and is awaiting extradition to face a seven-count indictment in the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Court filings allege that between March and April 2023, Adepoju gained remote access to the construction company’s systems, changed email rules, and registered a fake domain. He then sent fraudulent payment instructions to the university, which, believing them to be legitimate, updated the contractor’s payment details and wired about $235,266 to an account controlled by Adepoju.
Acting US Attorney Troy Rivetti confirmed that the funds remain unrecovered.
Rivetti said, “Adepoju is charged with using sophisticated cyber means to illegally access accounts belonging to a business in order to victimise one of our region’s universities. Even from halfway across the world, however, Adepoju was not beyond the investigative reach of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. His arrest in the United Kingdom underscores our district’s unwavering commitment to aggressively locate and prosecute cybercriminals worldwide with the assistance of our law enforcement partners, both here and abroad.”
FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Kevin Rojek warned that distance offers no protection from prosecution.
“Criminals who think they can reach across the globe into the United States to line their pockets at the expense of the American public need know one thing: the FBI and our partners are not going to let you get away with it. We will find you and bring you to justice, no matter where you might be. Email compromise schemes are not victimless crimes; they are one of the costliest threats large and small businesses, universities, and organisations face today,” Rojek said.
Adepoju faces six counts of wire fraud and one count of computer fraud. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, while the computer fraud charge carries up to five years.
The FBI’s Pittsburgh Field Office led the investigation, with Assistant US Attorney Mark V. Gurzo handling prosecution and support from the DOJ’s Office of International Affairs.
Authorities emphasized that the indictment is only an allegation and that Adepoju remains presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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Nigerians and crime