A 33-year-old Nigerian citizen, Edikan Adiakpan, has been apprehended in Houston, Texas, for his alleged involvement in a sophisticated multimillion-dollar money laundering and business email compromise (BEC) scheme. The arrest, confirmed by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei on Thursday, June 26, 2025, marks a significant development in the ongoing fight against international cyber financial crimes.
Adiakpan made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Peter Bray today, where he faced a three-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Houston on June 11. The charges against him include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to transmit illegal funds.
The indictment outlines a complex operation that, in 2021, allegedly saw Adiakpan and his co-conspirators orchestrate a BEC scheme targeting companies in at least eight U.S. states. Among the victims was a California research group dedicated to developing treatments for U.S. veterans, highlighting the insidious nature of such crimes. The fraudsters allegedly deployed “spoofed” emails designed to mimic correspondence from known suppliers and creditors, effectively tricking unsuspecting companies into diverting legitimate payments to bank accounts controlled by the criminal enterprise instead of the actual recipients.
Further allegations detail how the conspirators laundered the illicit funds by rapidly transferring the money between multiple controlled bank accounts. To further obscure the money trail, the funds were then allegedly converted into cashier’s checks. Adiakpan is accused of cashing these checks and retaining a percentage as his fee, acting as a crucial link in the money laundering chain.
This investigation also has ties to another case, as another Nigerian citizen, 26-year-old Ayobami Omoniyi, was previously charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud as part of the same scheme and is currently awaiting sentencing before U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen.
If convicted on the conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy charges, Adiakpan faces a potential sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison. The charge for illegal money transmitting carries a maximum penalty of five years. Each conviction also carries a possible $250,000 maximum fine. The ongoing investigation is a collaborative effort between the FBI – Houston and its Bryan Resident Agency, and IRS Criminal Investigation, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Belinda Beek and Christine Lu prosecuting the case. This arrest underscores the relentless efforts of U.S. law enforcement to dismantle international fraud networks and protect businesses from sophisticated cyber threats.
