James Junior Aliyu, a 30-year-old Nigerian national who resided in South Africa during the time of his offenses, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering in connection with a business email compromise (BEC) scheme. The announcement was made by Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, alongside Acting Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) – Baltimore.
Aliyu is the last of three defendants to plead guilty in this case. Eight other individuals have previously pleaded guilty in separate but related cases within the District of Maryland. According to court documents, Aliyu and co-conspirators—including others residing in Maryland—carried out their scheme between February and July 2017 by gaining unauthorized access to email accounts belonging to targeted individuals and businesses. They sent fraudulent wiring instructions from spoofed email addresses, deceiving victims into transferring funds into accounts controlled by the perpetrators.
During this period, Aliyu and his associates also engaged in money laundering activities. The group dispersed illegally obtained funds through various means such as account transfers, cash withdrawals, cashier’s checks, and checks written to other parties in order to conceal ownership and the origin of the assets. The intended loss for transactions involving Aliyu totaled at least $4.16 million, while actual losses reached approximately $1.57 million. Of these amounts, Aliyu directly controlled at least $1.19 million.
As part of his plea agreement, Aliyu must pay a money judgment equal to at least $1.19 million and restitution covering all victim losses, which both parties agree is at least $2.39 million. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison for conspiracy charges related to wire fraud and money laundering. Sentencing before U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman is set for November 24 at 10 a.m.
The investigation involved collaboration among several agencies: HSI’s Mid-Atlantic El Dorado Task Force played a significant role; support also came from South African authorities including its Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, National Prosecuting Authority, and Police Service; additionally, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs assisted with extradition efforts for all three defendants.
“U.S. Attorney Hayes commended HSI’s Mid-Atlantic El Dorado Task Force for its work in the investigation,” according to the statement released by her office.
“Ms. Hayes also thanked the South African Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, National Prosecuting Authority of South Africa, and South African Police Service.”
“Additionally, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) provided significant assistance in securing Aliyu’s extradition from South Africa.”
“OIA and the Department of Justice Canada’s International Assistance Group also provided substantial aid in securing the arrest and extradition of both Echefu and Simon-Ebo.”
“Ms. Hayes also recognized Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan S. McKoy who is prosecuting the federal case.”
Further information about resources or reporting fraud can be found on justice.gov/usao-md or justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.
