From South Africa to U.S. Jail: Nigerian James Aliyu bags jail term over $2.4m fraud

By Tolulope Oke

A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been sentenced to 90 months in prison in the United States for his role in a large-scale wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy.

The sentence was announced by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which disclosed that Aliyu was involved in a scheme that targeted business email servers.

According to authorities, Aliyu was extradited from South Africa to the United States to face prosecution over the cybercrime operation.

In addition to his jail term, the court ordered him to forfeit $1.2 million and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims affected by the fraud.

ICE further revealed that Aliyu will be deported from the United States upon completion of his prison sentence.

The investigation was carried out by special agents of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with teams in Maryland and South Africa working together as part of an international effort to track and prosecute the suspect.

Officials described the case as a successful example of cross-border collaboration in tackling cybercrime and financial fraud.