Nigerian Extradited to the United States Found Guilty in Multi-Million Dollar Email Fraud Scheme
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A Nigerian national, Kosi Hudness Simon-SBO, was recently extradited to the United States and has been found guilty of participating in a fraudulent scheme involving compromising corporate email accounts, known as Business Email Compromise (BEC). According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Simon-SBO, aged 29, confessed to the conspiracy to commit fraud through bank transfers and money laundering.
The fraudulent activities took place between February and July 2017, during which Simon-SBO and his accomplices, including one residing in Maryland, illegally gained access to victims’ email accounts. They then deceived the victims into transferring funds to accounts controlled by the scammers using counterfeit correspondence.
According to court documents, Simon-SBO and his partners laundered the stolen funds by transferring money to various accounts, withdrawing cash, and receiving cash receipts. While their initial goal was to steal approximately $7 million, their actual earnings amounted to just over $1 million. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that Simon-SBO personally controlled $45,925 of the stolen funds.
As part of the guilty plea agreement, Simon-SBO is obligated to provide compensation and fully reimburse the victims for the amount of over one million dollars stolen. If convicted for conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering, Simon-SBO faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. He was extradited from Canada to the U.S. on April 12, 2023, and only last week formally acknowledged the charges against him.
Business Email Compromise (BEC) remains one of the most lucrative methods for cybercriminals to generate illicit profits. According to information provided by the FBI, BEC attacks have become the second most profitable type of cybercrime, raking in a total of over $2.7 billion for fraudsters.