Ridwan Adepoju, a Nigerian national, has been sentenced by a U.S. federal judge to 43 months in prison for orchestrating a sophisticated fraud scheme that targeted individuals and businesses in Chicago. The scheme was carried out directly from Nigeria.
Mr. Adepoju’s sentencing followed his arrest in the United Kingdom last year, which was made at the request of U.S. authorities. He was swiftly extradited to the United States, where he later entered a guilty plea to federal charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Prosecutors revealed that the 33-year-old and his co-conspirators ran multiple scams — including phishing and romance scams, as well as filing fraudulent tax returns — aimed at unsuspecting victims across Chicago. These operations were coordinated remotely from Nigeria.
An FBI investigation showed that the fraud ring specialized in crafting spoofed email addresses and fake social media identities, which were used to deceive victims into transferring large sums of money under the impression that they were dealing with legitimate entities.
The sentencing was delivered on June 17, 2025, by Judge Matthew Kennelly of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. In addition to the prison term, Mr. Adepoju may also face deportation to Nigeria after serving his sentence.
“Defendant’s offense involved a years-long, complex scheme, involving several types of scams and many victims,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann Marie Ursini wrote in tprosecution’s sentencing memo.
“Defendant chose to be a willing participant in the scheme over and over again.
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