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The United States has extradited two Nigerian men, Adebola Festus Adekunle and Mudasiru Afeez Olawale, to face separate federal prosecutions over alleged financially motivated sextortion schemes targeting minors in the US.
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Adekunle, 26, is charged with sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death, coercion and enticement of a minor, and interstate threats with intent to extort, offences that could expose him to life imprisonment if convicted.
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Olawale, 24, faces separate charges involving the alleged sexual exploitation and coercion of minors, distribution of child pornography and other related offences in North Carolina.
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The cases are linked to Operation Artemis, an FBI-led crackdown on sextortion networks operating from Nigeria, which US authorities say have been directly linked to the deaths by suicide of dozens of American teenagers.
September 01, (THEWILL) — The United States has extradited two Nigerian men to face prosecution in separate cases involving the alleged financially motivated sextortion of American minors, with one of the defendants facing a charge connected to the death of a victim.
The suspects, 26-year-old Adebola Festus Adekunle of Lagos State and 24-year-old Mudasiru Afeez Olawale, were extradited from Nigeria to the United States on August 27 following investigations by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Nigerian security authorities.
The US Mission in Nigeria disclosed this in a statement issued Tuesday, saying the two cases arose from a broader law enforcement operation targeting foreign-based criminal networks involved in financially motivated sextortion of minors in the United States.
Adekunle appeared before a federal court in Oxford, Mississippi, on Monday for his initial appearance, while Olawale appeared separately before US Magistrate Judge L. Patrick Auld at the federal court in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Adekunle Faces Life Imprisonment
According to the US Department of Justice, Adekunle is facing charges of sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death, coercion and enticement of a minor, and interstate threats with intent to extort.
The department said the child exploitation resulting in death charge carries a minimum sentence of 30 years in prison, while the charges against him expose him to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and mandatory minimum prison terms on at least two counts.
The charges relate to allegations that Adekunle participated in a sextortion scheme targeting minors in the United States.
Financially motivated sextortion involves perpetrators coercing victims into providing sexually explicit images or videos and subsequently threatening to release the material unless the victims pay money or provide additional content.
US authorities have increasingly linked such schemes to severe psychological consequences among young victims, including suicide.
Olawale Faces Multiple Charges
Olawale is facing a separate set of federal charges relating to the alleged sexual exploitation of minors.
The charges include sexual exploitation of minors, coercion and enticement of minors, distribution of child pornography and other related offences.
The Justice Department said Olawale was arrested in Nigeria on August 9, 2023, as part of a wider operation conducted in cooperation with the FBI to apprehend alleged sexual extortionists targeting minors in the United States.
He was subsequently extradited to the US, where he is now being prosecuted in federal court in North Carolina.
The department said the prosecution of the two Nigerians demonstrates the US government’s determination to pursue perpetrators of crimes against children even when the alleged offences are carried out from outside the country.
“The Department of Justice and this administration have demonstrated an unwavering commitment to protecting America’s children from exploitation and sexual abuse,” the US government said.
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FBI Operation Targets Nigerian Sextortion Networks
The two cases are connected to Operation Artemis, an FBI-led surge targeting financially motivated sextortion networks operating from Nigeria.
According to US authorities, the operation involved the deployment of FBI agents, analysts and forensic experts to Nigeria to work with local law enforcement agencies in identifying and apprehending alleged perpetrators.
The US government said the investigation was prompted by the growing threat posed by sextortion schemes and their devastating consequences for young victims. It said perpetrators operating through foreign criminal networks had targeted American teenagers and that the schemes were directly linked to dozens of teen deaths by suicide.
The operation has since evolved into part of a broader US law enforcement effort to dismantle foreign criminal networks involved in sextortion and other predatory schemes targeting children online.
“This same focused, multi-agency approach now drives a broader national effort to dismantle the foreign criminal networks behind sextortion and other predatory schemes,” the US government said.
The extradition of Adekunle and Olawale was facilitated by the US Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI Legal Attaché in Abuja and FBI agents from the Jackson and Greensboro Resident Agencies.
The FBI personnel travelled to Nigeria to take the two suspects into US custody following the completion of the extradition process.
The US government commended Nigerian security authorities for their cooperation in the investigation, arrests and subsequent extradition of the alleged offenders.
The development highlights the growing cooperation between Nigerian and US law enforcement agencies in tackling cyber-enabled crimes that cross international borders.
Felix Ifijeh is a journalist with years of professional reporting experience. Known for his keen news sense, compelling storytelling and commitment to accurate, impactful reporting, he has built a reputation for turning leads into clear, engaging, and well-structured reports that resonate with readers. His work reflects deep newsroom experience and a commitment to accurate, impactful journalism.
