● Covered by 2 sources · 2 reportsMedium impact2 neutral
Former US Air Force Members Sentenced for Multi-Year BEC and Phishing Scams
Key points
- Two former USAF members sentenced to 189 months combined.
- Stole over $2.4 million via BEC and phishing scams.
- Used stolen credentials and spoofed emails to divert payments.
- Ordered to pay over $1.3 million in restitution.
- Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu, 25, and Harafat Mogaji, 26, were identified as the USAF members.
- Odimegwu received a 9-year sentence; Mogaji received a 6.5-year sentence.
- Odimegwu will pay $366,617 in restitution; Mogaji will pay $995,680.
- The men were stationed at Dover, Delaware Air Force base.
- Both pleaded guilty to wire fraud, identity theft, and access device fraud charges in June.
- Each will serve a three-year supervised release term.
- They worked with others to attack at least 15 victim organizations.
Sentencing for BEC and Phishing Offenses
Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu, 25, and Harafat Mogaji, 26, both former members of the United States Air Force, have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a series of business email compromise (BEC) scams and phishing campaigns. Odimegwu received 111 months and Mogaji 78 months, totaling 189 months of imprisonment. They were also ordered to pay restitution amounts of $366,617.59 and $995,680.45, respectively.
Method of Operation
While stationed at Dover Air Force Base, the defendants conducted spamming and phishing campaigns to steal employee email credentials. They then used these credentials and spoofed email addresses to impersonate business partners, redirecting legitimate wire transfers to bank accounts controlled by their accomplices. They also made unauthorized financial transactions using stolen account information, PINs, and credit/debit card numbers obtained from victims or purchased from co-conspirators.
Significant Financial Losses
The Department of Justice reported that Odimegwu and Mogaji fraudulently diverted a $1.68 million wire transfer from a victim in Iowa City, Iowa, and a $720,000 wire from a victim in Ohio. These incidents were part of numerous attempts to divert wire transfers from businesses across the country. After their prison terms, both individuals will serve a three-year term of supervised release.
Understanding BEC Attacks
Business email compromise (BEC) scams involve cybercriminals using compromised email accounts to trick billing departments into changing banking information, thereby redirecting legitimate corporate payments to attacker-controlled accounts. Once funds are received, attackers quickly move the money to evade recovery. The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report identifies BEC as a major cyber threat, with 24,768 complaints and over $3 billion in losses.
Updates
- Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu, 25, and Harafat Mogaji, 26, were identified as the USAF members.
- Odimegwu received a 9-year sentence; Mogaji received a 6.5-year sentence.
- Odimegwu will pay $366,617 in restitution; Mogaji will pay $995,680.
- The men were stationed at Dover, Delaware Air Force base.
- Both pleaded guilty to wire fraud, identity theft, and access device fraud charges in June.
- Each will serve a three-year supervised release term.
- They worked with others to attack at least 15 victim organizations.
✨ This summary was generated by AI from the outlets' reporting listed below. It is not independently verified and may contain errors — check the original sources. How BrevFeed works →
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How outlets covered it
Two U.S. Air Force members received prison sentences exceeding six years for orchestrating a business email compromise scheme that defrauded multiple organizations of over $2 million. They used phishing to steal login credentials, then redirected payments into their own accounts, leading to convictions for wire fraud, identity theft, and access device fraud.
Two former US Air Force members, Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu and Harafat Mogaji, received federal prison sentences totaling 189 months for their involvement in business email compromise (BEC) and phishing campaigns. They stole over $2.4 million by redirecting legitimate wire transfers and making unauthorized financial transactions, highlighting the ongoing threat of BEC attacks to businesses.