Man deported from South Africa to America sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for scam

A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been handed a 90-month prison sentence for his involvement in a wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy that centered on the hacking of business email systems, according to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

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The sentence was imposed for Aliyu's role in a scheme that targeted corporate email servers, and he was extradited from South Africa to face justice in the United States, as announced by ICE in a statement on Saturday.

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In addition to the prison term, the court has ordered Aliyu to pay $1.2 million in forfeiture and $2.4 million in restitution, with deportation to follow upon completion of his sentence.

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ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operatives in Maryland and South Africa worked in tandem with international partners to investigate the case, highlighting the agency's involvement in bringing Aliyu to justice.

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According to an August 2025 report by the U.S. Department of Justice, Aliyu, 30, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, becoming the third and final defendant to do so in the business email compromise (BEC) scheme.

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Eight other individuals had previously pleaded guilty in related cases before the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, underscoring the scope of the conspiracy.

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The case was highlighted by U.S. Attorney for the district, Kelly O. Hayes, who announced the plea alongside Acting Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella, emphasizing the scale of coordinated cyber-enabled fraud.

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Court filings reveal that a federal grand jury indicted Aliyu, along with Kosi Goodness Simon-Ebo and Henry Onyedikachi Echefu, on June 24, 2019, for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.

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The indictment was unsealed on July 6, 2022, following the arrests of the defendants outside the United States, after which they were extradited to face trial in the U.S.