The US federal court has sentenced two Nigerian nationals residing in Delaware to a combined 189 months in prison for their roles in a cyber-intrusion scheme that defrauded businesses and non-profit organisations of more than $2.4 million.
The defendants, Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu, 25, and Harafat Mogaji, 26, received their sentences on September 25, 2026, after authorities convicted them for participating in an international fraud operation.
According to public documents and evidence presented during sentencing, Odimegwu and Mogaji carried out the scheme for nearly two years while serving in the United States Air Force. They targeted businesses across the US through email-spamming and phishing campaigns designed to obtain employees’ usernames and passwords.
Odimegwu received 111 months, approximately nine years and three months, in federal prison. The court also ordered him to pay $366,617.59 in restitution and serve three years under supervised release after his imprisonment.
Mogaji received a 78 month prison sentence, equivalent to six years and six months. He must also pay $995,680.45 in restitution and complete three years of supervised release after his release from prison.
Altogether, the court ordered the two men to pay more than $1.36 million in restitution.
Prosecutors said the defendants obtained sensitive information, including financial account and credit card details, which they used to carry out unauthorized transactions across the United States.
The scheme also targeted a non-profit organisation in Iowa, among other victims.
Following their sentences, US authorities took both defendants into custody immediately marking the beginning of their respective three-year supervised-release periods after completing their prison sentences.
By Musekir Faisat OmolaraÂ
