A Nigerian national living in the United Kingdom has been arrested at the request of the United States following his indictment on multiple fraud charges, Acting U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti announced.
Farouk Adekunle Adepoju was taken into custody by U.K. authorities on September 15, 2025, and now awaits extradition to the United States to face a seven-count indictment in the Western District of Pennsylvania.
According to unsealed court documents, Adepoju allegedly hacked into a protected computer system belonging to a Pennsylvania construction company between March and April 2023. By altering email rules and creating a spoofed domain, he impersonated a company employee to deceive a local university into updating payment details. The university subsequently transferred approximately $235,266.80 to a fraudulent bank account controlled by Adepoju. The funds remain unrecovered.
“Adepoju is charged with using sophisticated cyber means to illegally access accounts belonging to a business in order to victimize one of our region’s universities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Rivetti. “His arrest in the United Kingdom underscores our commitment to pursuing cybercriminals worldwide with the help of our law enforcement partners.”
FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Kevin Rojek added: “We will find you and bring you to justice, no matter where you might be. Email compromise schemes are among the costliest threats organizations face today.”
Adepoju faces six counts of wire fraud and one count of computer fraud. Each wire fraud charge carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, while the computer fraud charge carries up to five years. Actual sentencing, if convicted, would depend on the seriousness of the offenses and Adepoju’s criminal history.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark V. Gurzo, with assistance from the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs. The FBI’s Pittsburgh Field Office led the investigation.
An indictment is an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
