A Nigerian man and two accomplices admitted guilt and were sentenced for their involvement in defrauding Appalachian State University of over $1.9 million in 2016. Oludayo Kolawole John Adeagbo, 45, who holds dual citizenship in Nigeria and the UK, received a seven-year prison sentence for one count each of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The sentencing took place on Tuesday at U.S. District Court, as announced by U.S. Attorney Dena King. Adeagbo had pleaded guilty to these charges on April 8.
His co-conspirators were Donald Ikenna Echeazu, 42, also a dual citizen of Nigeria and the UK, and Ho Shin Lee from California, as stated in court documents. The trio operated a multi-million dollar email scam in 2016, with Appalachian State University being one of the victims. Adeagbo also attempted to defraud a college, various government entities, and construction companies in Texas out of $3 million, according to King.
The email scheme is a type of scam that typically targets individuals, employees, or businesses involved in financial transactions or regular wire transfers, according to King. Those orchestrating these scams are often part of larger criminal networks.
Defrauding Appalachian State University
Between August 30, 2016, and January 12, 2017, Adeagbo, Echeazu, and Lee defrauded Appalachian State University of $1,959,925. This money was intended for Rodgers Builders, a construction firm in Charlotte, for a new academic building at the university, as outlined in court documents. In 2016, Appalachian State University entered a contract with Rodgers Builders to construct a multi-million-dollar health sciences building, with payments to be processed through an automated system. On August 30, 2016, Adeagbo set up an account with a company providing information on construction projects in the U.S., which included details about project-related employees, contracting firms, and contract amounts.
The information regarding the Appalachian State University project was among the data he obtained. On November 18, 2016, Ho Lee established a fake company in California named Royce Hub Trading Inc. This shell corporation was used to launder the funds fraudulently acquired from Appalachian State University. It created an account with J.P. Morgan Chase Bank in California on November 23, 2016. Simultaneously, Donald Echeazu fabricated a website that mimicked Rodgers Builders’ official site. The counterfeit domain was rodgersbuildersinc.com, whereas the legitimate domain is rodgersbuilders.com. Echeazu then created an email account using the fake domain at accounts@rodgersbuildersinc.com, according to court documents.
In December 2016, an employee at Appalachian State University received an email from accountsw@rodgersbuildersinc.com. This message falsely claimed to be from a legitimate Rodgers Builders employee responsible for finances, according to court documents. The email included a direct deposit form for a J.P. Morgan Chase Bank account created by Ho Lee, instructing the university employee to send payment for the health sciences building to the fake account instead of the official banking details from Rodgers Builders. The employee followed the instructions in the fraudulent email.
On December 8, 2016, Appalachian State University processed a payment of $1,959,925 to Rodgers Builders, which was then deposited into the fraudulent account. Ho Lee utilized the Royce Hub Trading shell corporation to set up multiple bank accounts where the money was subsequently transferred from the J.P. Morgan Chase Bank. From November 2016 to July 2018, Adeagbo colluded with others in various cyber-enabled business email compromises (BEC) in an attempt to steal over $3 million from entities in Texas, including local governments, construction firms, and a college in the Houston area, as stated by U.S. Attorney King. “Oludayo Adeagbo believed he was clever for stealing money through this scam. His victims, however, strongly disagree,” said FBI Executive Assistant Director Michael Nordwall. “Instead of enjoying his ill-gotten gains, Adeagbo will be facing time in federal prison. BEC scams are rapidly growing and costly, and combating them requires cooperation, often on an international level. This case exemplifies how effective partnerships can be.”
Sentences
In addition to seven years in prison, Adeagbo received one year of supervised release after his incarceration. He was also ordered to pay restitution of $942,655.03, according to court records. Echeazu pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit felony wire fraud. On May 16, 2023, he was sentenced to 1.5 years in prison, followed by a year of supervised release, and was required to pay $655,408.87 in restitution, as per court documents. Lee pleaded guilty to felony money laundering involving interstate commerce. On February 19, 2019, he was sentenced to three years and one month in prison, along with one year of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $1,959,925.02 in restitution, according to court documents.
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