Kingsley Utulu, a Nigerian, was found guilty of participating in a massive identity theft and hacking scam that deceived private citizens and U.S. tax officials out of more than $2.5 million, and he was sentenced to five years and three months in jail.
Following Utulu’s guilty plea to charges of conspiracy to commit wire
This defendant’s plot, along with those of his co-conspirators, reached all across the world to profit from the exploitation of private information.
“No matter where they are located, the FBI will never exempt anyone who tries to illegally profit through dishonest practices.”
According to a DataBreaches.net report that PUNCH Metro was able to receive on Sunday, which was based on statements and court records made public, the plan began in 2019.
and aggravated identity theft, the FBI’s New York Field Office Assistant Director in Charge Christopher Raia and U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton announced the sentencing on Saturday.
Kingsley Uchelue Utulu participated in a plot to hack into U.S. tax preparation companies, trade in the stolen personal data, and cheat the IRS and other government agencies, according to Clayton.
Offshore scammers like Utulu and his co-conspirators may think they can target hard-working Americans with their hacking and fraud schemes and avoid prosecution.
“The Department and FBI have made it quite plain that they are unable to. We are dedicated to defending Americans from criminals that operate abroad.
In response to the conviction, Raia also stated that Utulu’s conduct had caused serious injury.
Raia claimed that Kingsley Utulu, a Nigerian national, was involved in a plot to steal well over two million dollars through false tax filings by targeting and breaking into the electronic systems of American businesses.
Utulu and other Nigeria-based conspirators took part in a scheme to hack into U.S.-based tax preparation businesses. The conspirators utilised spearphishing emails to obtain access to these businesses’ electronic systems.
“Once access was gained, they stole tax and personal identifying information of clients, hacking into multiple tax preparation firms in New York, Texas, and other states,” the report noted.
The stolen identities were then used to file fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and various state tax agencies.
The report added, “The conspirators sought at least $8.4 million in fraudulent refunds and successfully obtained around $2.5m.
“They also filed fraudulent claims with the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program, securing an additional $819,000.”
Utulu, 38, was arrested in the United Kingdom and later extradited to the United States to face prosecution.
In addition to his 63-month prison sentence, he was ordered to pay restitution totalling $3,683,029.39 and to forfeit $290,250.
His conviction adds to a growing list of Nigerians prosecuted in the U.S. and Europe for cyber-enabled financial crimes.
