Two Nigerian-American members of the United States Air Force have been sentenced to several years in federal prison for their roles in an international cyber fraud scheme that targeted businesses and nonprofit organisations.
The two, identified as Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu and Harafat Mogaji, were convicted over their involvement in a scheme that used stolen credit card information and phishing emails to divert funds into accounts controlled by members of their network.
According to a report by DW Africa, Odimegwu was sentenced to 111 months in federal prison, while Mogaji received a 78-month sentence.
Prosecutors said the network targeted victims across the United States, using fraudulent emails and stolen financial information to redirect legitimate payments.
The scheme reportedly defrauded one victim in Iowa of about US$1.68 million, while another victim in Ohio lost more than US$720,000.
Beyond the prison terms, the two former Air Force members were ordered to pay more than US$1.2 million in restitution to their victims.
Odimegwu was ordered to pay approximately US$366,600, while Mogaji was ordered to pay about US$995,700, according to the report.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case with assistance from the US Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
The convictions bring the case to a conclusion after investigators traced the fraudulent transactions and established the involvement of the two men in the wider cyber fraud network.
