United States Attorney Leura G. Canary Middle District of Alabama

TROY RESIDENT FOUND GUILTY IN NIGERIAN FRAUD CONSPIRACY TRIAL
Five Former Troy University Students Also Plead Guilty to Other Charges Stemming from this Conspiracy

MONTGOMERY, ALA.—A federal jury has found Troy resident, Adrian L. White, 31, guilty of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Leura G. Canary announced today.

White is the second defendant to stand trial in a multi-defendant, nine count indictment, which charges a variety of Nigerian students at Troy University and several American nationals from Troy with a variety of fraud-related charges, including conspiring to commit mail, wire, and bank fraud. White may receive a maximum sentence of up to 30 years imprisonment and $1,000,000 fine. White’s sentencing is set for March 6, 2007, before Judge Myron Thompson.

The first defendant to stand trial on these charges was Bankole Babajide Balogun, a Nigerian national and former Troy University student. Balogun was convicted by a Montgomery federal jury in September 2007. In addition to White and Balogun, five other former Troy University students have already pleaded guilty to charges stemming from this same case:

• Adeleke Olutubosun Taiwo, age 25,
• Arinniyi Omolade Akinyemi, age 25,
• Erick Ashanti Andrews, age 28,
• Antony Ward, age 23
• Bendict Olusola Adande. age 27.

Taiwo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud on November 30, 2007. Akinyemi pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and to tampering with mail on October 29, 2007. Ward and Andrews pleaded guilty to bank fraud on December 5, 2007, and November 30, 2007, respectively. Finally, Adande pleaded guilty to bank fraud and false use of a social security number on November 16, 2006, in a separate, but related case. Two defendants are still at large in this case.

As part of the conspiracy, Adande and others would obtain counterfeit, stolen, altered, or forged checks–oftentimes through the use of stolen mail and credit card account numbers. Other times, they would use stolen mail and credit card numbers to conduct wire transfers.

In furtherance of the scheme, Taiwo, Balogun, White, Andrews, Akinyemi, Ward, and others were then recruited either to open bank accounts in order to deposit the checks and wire transfers in Alabama or Georgia; or to receive mail and merchandise on behalf of the conspiracy, which had been diverted from and made with the compromised credit card accounts.

These defendants and others would then withdraw funds by writing checks on these accounts, making cash withdrawals from ATMs, and using debit and credit cards to purchase merchandise, gift cards, and money orders.

White’s bank fraud conviction involved two accounts–a Colonial Bank in Ozark, Alabama, which had a $32,000 fraudulent wire transfer and a Bank of American account in Kennasaw, Georgia, which had a $32,000 fraudulent wire transfer and a $15,200 fraudulently endorsed check.

This matter was investigated jointly by the U.S. Postal Inspector Service and the Troy Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher A. Snyder and Steve Feaga.