James Junior Aliyu, a Nigerian national, has been sentenced to 90 months (7½ years) in federal prison in the United States for his role in a sophisticated wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy.
According to court documents and announcements from U.S. authorities, Aliyu was part of a group that targeted business email compromise (BEC) schemes, planning to hack corporate email servers to intercept and redirect legitimate payments to fraudster-controlled accounts.
In addition to the prison term, Aliyu was ordered to forfeit $1.2 million in criminal proceeds and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims.
Upon completion of his sentence, Aliyu will be removed from the United States.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents in Maryland and South Africa expressed pride in their role within the multinational team that investigated and brought the case forward.
The sentencing underscores ongoing U.S. efforts—often in partnership with foreign law enforcement—to combat transnational cyber-enabled financial crimes targeting American businesses and individuals.