39-year-old Nigerian extradited to US from France over alleged hacking

A Nigerian man has been extradited to the United States from France to face charges of computer hacking, fraud and identity theft, the Justice Department said Tuesday.

Chukwuemeka Victor Amachukwu, 39, and Nigeria-based co-conspirators allegedly hacked US-tax preparation businesses, stole customers’ identifying information and filed fraudulent tax returns.

They obtained at least $2.5 million in tax refunds from the Internal Revenue Service, the Justice Department said in a statement.

“Amachukwu also allegedly took part in a separate fraud scheme that promised his victims valuable investments that did not in fact exist,” US Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York said.

In addition to those schemes, Amachukwu allegedly used stolen identities to file fraudulent claims with the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program, managing to obtain an additional $819,000 in fraudulent payouts, the Justice Department said.

Amachukwu was arrested in France at the request of the United States and extradited to New York on Monday.

He potentially faces decades behind bars if convicted of conspiracy to commit computer intrusions, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and identity theft.

AFP

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