Nigerian Man Jailed in US for Hacking Business Emails, Fraud

A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been sentenced to 90 months (seven and a half years) in prison in the United States for his involvement in a large-scale wire fraud and money laundering scheme.

According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Aliyu played a key role in a transnational cybercrime network that targeted business email systems and defrauded individuals and organisations of millions of dollars.

Investigations revealed that the fraud scheme involved hacking into corporate email accounts and using them to divert funds through fraudulent transactions. Authorities said the operation affected multiple victims and formed part of a broader business email compromise (BEC) conspiracy.

Aliyu was arrested in South Africa in 2022 following an international investigation involving Interpol and local law enforcement before being extradited to the United States to face trial.

The 30-year-old later pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. As part of the sentence, the court ordered him to forfeit $1.2 million and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims.

Authorities also confirmed that Aliyu will be deported after completing his prison term.