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- Lotenna Chisom Umeadi, a Nigerian man, has pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud.
- Umeadi engaged in a sophisticated email fraud scheme, targeting a Sri Lankan produce exporter and a U.S.-based importer.
- He faces up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release.
A Nigerian man, Lotenna Chisom Umeadi, has been extradited to the United States from Germany to face charges of defrauding a firm. According to court documents, Umeadi admitted to engaging in a sophisticated email fraud scheme that targeted a Sri Lankan produce exporter and a U.S.-based importer.
Umeadi’s scheme involved soliciting and purchasing a webpage from a hacker, which enabled him to steal email passwords. He then infiltrated email accounts belonging to employees of the Sri Lankan produce exporter, posing as the company to send fraudulent emails directing payments to bank accounts in the United Kingdom, which he controlled.
As a result of these deceptive emails, a produce importer based in Plattsburgh, New York, transferred a total of $158,400 to Umeadi’s accounts in 2016. Umeadi was arrested in Germany on September 1, 2024, upon his arrival from Nigeria, and was subsequently extradited to the United States to face charges.
Umeadi is set to be sentenced on July 21, 2025, and faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. Following the completion of his sentence, Umeadi will be removed from the United States. The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Collyer prosecuting the case.
