US Extradites Two Nigerians Over Alleged Sextortion

Two Nigerian men arrested in Nigeria in 2023 have been extradited to the United States to face charges over alleged financially motivated sextortion of minors in separate cases involving the deaths of teenagers.

The US Department of Justice announced the extraditions on Friday, August 28, 2026, saying Adebola Festus Adekunle, 26, and Mudasiru Afeez Olawale, 24, were taken into US custody on August 27 with assistance from Nigerian authorities.

Both men are facing prosecution in separate federal cases in Mississippi and North Carolina over allegations that they sexually exploited minors through sextortion schemes.

Adekunle, a Lagos resident, was extradited to face charges in the Northern District of Mississippi over the alleged sextortion of a minor whose death followed the conduct alleged in the indictment.

He was arrested in Nigeria on August 14, 2023, as part of an FBI operation targeting individuals accused of financially motivated sextortion of minors in the United States.

US prosecutors have charged Adekunle with sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death, coercion and enticement of a minor, and interstate threats with intent to extort.

The sexual exploitation resulting in death charge carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, if he is convicted.

Adekunle appeared in federal court in Oxford, Mississippi, on Friday for his initial appearance.

The case is being investigated by the FBI Jackson Field Office, the FBI’s Violent Crimes Against Children Section and International Operations Division, together with the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office.

Olawale, who was also arrested in Nigeria in August 2023, was extradited to face separate charges in the Middle District of North Carolina.

US prosecutors allege that he was involved in the financially motivated sextortion of one minor and the sextortion and death of another minor victim.

Olawale was indicted in August 2023 on charges relating to sexual exploitation of minors resulting in death, enticement of minors, interstate threatening communications and distribution of child sexual abuse material.

He appeared before US Magistrate Judge L. Patrick Auld in federal court in Greensboro, North Carolina, on Friday.

Like Adekunle, Olawale faces a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment and mandatory minimum prison terms on at least two charges if convicted.

The two cases form part of Operation Artemis, an FBI campaign targeting financially motivated sextortion networks operating from Nigeria.

According to the Justice Department, the FBI deployed agents, analysts and forensic experts to Nigeria as part of the operation and worked with Nigerian and other international law enforcement agencies to identify and pursue suspects.

US authorities said financially motivated sextortion schemes have been linked to dozens of American teenagers dying by suicide.

The FBI said the cases demonstrate its intention to pursue suspects beyond US borders and work with foreign authorities to bring them before American courts.

FBI Director Kash Patel said Adekunle and Olawale had been in Nigeria for about three years before being returned to the United States.

The extraditions involved the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI Legal Attaché in Abuja and FBI agents from the Jackson and Greensboro Resident Agencies.

Nigerian authorities also assisted the operation, with the US Justice Department specifically acknowledging the role of Nigeria’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the Federal Ministry of Justice’s International Criminal Justice Cooperation Department and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

US Attorney Scott Leary for the Northern District of Mississippi said the investigation into Adekunle followed the death of a child and involved the FBI, Mississippi authorities, the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office and Starkville Police Department.

He said evidence gathered during the investigation led investigators to Nigeria, after which the FBI worked with the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs to secure the suspect’s extradition.

US Attorney Dan Bishop for the Middle District of North Carolina said Olawale’s extradition came nearly three years after his indictment and almost five years after the alleged conduct, allowing him to finally appear before a US court to answer the charges.

The Justice Department said the extraditions form part of a broader US effort to dismantle foreign criminal networks involved in financially motivated sextortion and other forms of child exploitation.

US Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department had strengthened international law enforcement partnerships to identify and prosecute individuals involved in the sexual exploitation of American children.

The FBI also warned that international borders would not prevent suspects accused of sextortion from being pursued.

The charges against Adekunle and Olawale remain allegations, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.