Federal jurors returned guilty verdicts on April 24, 2026, after a fast-moving trial that exposed an international email-hacking operation which siphoned roughly $215 million from more than 1,000 victims across 47 states and multiple countries.

After a four-day trial in Toledo, a federal jury found three people guilty in the conspiracy that prosecutors say relied on hacked business email accounts to steal millions. The defendants convicted on April 24, 2026, were Oluwafemi Michael Awoyemi, 40, of Romeoville, Illinois; Aruan Drake, 37, of Atlanta, Georgia; and Peter Reed, 35, of Oak Forest, Illinois. Judge James R. Knepp II presided over the case, and Awoyemi and Drake were also convicted of a money laundering conspiracy in addition to wire fraud conspiracy.

The criminal operation spanned 47 states and reached into 19 countries, hitting more than 1,000 victims for an estimated $215 million in losses. Prosecutors described the scheme as a coordinated “business email compromise” run by groups with links to Nigeria. So far, 25 defendants have been convicted for roles tied to the fraud and related money laundering.

According to court filings and trial evidence, members of the conspiracy gained unauthorized access to email accounts used by individuals and organizations across the United States. Once inside those accounts, they quietly monitored messages and calendar activity to learn how victims handled payments, vendors, and internal approvals. That intelligence let the conspirators craft messages that appeared to come from trusted contacts and push victims to transfer funds to accounts controlled by the scheme.

The fake payment requests were written to look like routine business instructions, prompting recipients to move money for what seemed like legitimate expenses. After victims wired funds, the conspiracy funneled the proceeds through a maze of fraudulently created bank accounts, shell companies, and cash transfer services to obscure the trail. Prosecutors detailed how the laundered funds were split and moved across borders to frustrate recovery efforts and detection.

Roughly $50 million of the stolen proceeds were allegedly converted to cashier’s checks and presented for payment at the New Dolton Currency Exchange, a Chicago-area money service business owned by co-defendant Lon Goodman. Goodman is accused of accepting cashier’s checks purchased with stolen funds, often presented with false identification or payable to other people. When checks became risky in individual names, Goodman allegedly accepted checks made out to shell companies controlled by conspiracy members.

Victims in Ohio included businesses in Norwalk, Kent, Akron, Hudson, Maple Heights, Westfield Center, New Riegel, and Greenwich, showing how the scheme reached into local commercial networks. Outside Ohio, victims were identified in New York, California, Texas, Kansas, North Carolina, Florida, Arizona, Michigan, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Tennessee, Virginia, Maryland, South Carolina, Delaware, Hawaii, Alaska, Idaho, New Jersey, and numerous other states. International victims were identified in Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Panama, Bermuda, Romania, and other countries.

The dollar amounts wired by victims varied widely, ranging from tens of thousands to multi-million-dollar transfers. In a particularly large example presented at trial, a victim business sent $2.7 million to a shell company bank account controlled by a member of the conspiracy. Those high-value transfers underscored how sophisticated frauds like this can drain corporate accounts quickly when attackers know the right people to impersonate.

Among items seized or subject to forfeiture during the investigation were a mix of cash, checks, high-end watches, and real estate that prosecutors tied to the conspiracy. The investigation recovered nearly $1.2 million worth of cashier’s checks, cryptocurrency, and cash, along with luxury timepieces and a residence allegedly bought with illicit proceeds.

• Nearly $1.2 million worth of cashier’s checks, cryptocurrency, and cash
• Patek Philippe Nautilus watch, $45,000 value
• Audemars Piguet Royal Oak watch, $30,000 value
• Richard Mille Felipe Massa watch, $140,000 value
• 4,423 square foot residence in Lawrenceville, Georgia

In addition to the three defendants convicted at trial, a significant group of co-conspirators previously pleaded guilty to Wire Fraud Conspiracy and Money Laundering Conspiracy. Those entered pleas list dozens of participants, including U.S. residents and foreign nationals, some identified with aliases used during the scheme. The roster of guilty pleas underscores the broad, multi-jurisdictional nature of the network prosecutors unraveled.

• Ayobami Osas Christopher, aka Lovely Man, 30, a naturalized U.S. citizen residing in Lawrenceville, Georgia
• Emmauel Okereke, aka Omo Igbo, 42, a Nigerian national, residing in Atlanta
• Olalekan Bashiru, aka Ola Bash, 36, a Nigerian national, residing in Chicago
• Mark Dabney, 26, of Chicago
• Casey Adesulu Jr., 28, of Houston
• Jeremiah Agina, 29, a Nigerian national, residing in Houston
• Ayorinde Emmanuel Adebayo, 35, a naturalized U.S. citizen, residing in Olympia Fields, Illinois
• Emily Agyemang, 35, of Joliet, Illinois
• Ademola Balogun, 43, a Nigerian national, residing in Chicago
• Olabode Bankole, 37, a naturalized U.S. citizen, residing in Loganville, Georgia
• India Barnes, 37, of Atlanta
• Emmanuel Essilfie, 28, a Ghanaian national, residing in Naperville, Illinois
• Chukwuemeka Evulukwu, 35, a naturalized U.S. citizen, residing in Atlanta
• Jeremiah Glinsey, 32, of Chicago
• Lon Goodman, 69, of Whiting, Indiana
• Shaquille I. Jackson, 33, of Chicago
• Mikhail Keize, 31, of Loganville, Georgia
• Katiera Lackey, 25, of Houston
• Kingsley Owusu, 37, a naturalized U.S. citizen, residing in Chicago
• Anton Parker, 37, of Chicago
• Carlton Pruitt, 27, of Bellwood, Illinois
• Ronnell Spencer, 35, of Chicago

Sentences for each defendant will be set by the court after review of individual factors such as criminal history and role in the offense. The investigation that produced the indictment was led by the FBI Cleveland Division, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the U.S. Border Patrol Sandusky Bay Intelligence Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Gene Crawford and Robert Melching prosecuted the case for the Northern District of Ohio.