Adekoya also faces removal from the United States after completing his sentence
A Nigerian national who orchestrated a sophisticated, nationwide scheme targeting Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison in the United States.
Oluwaseun Adekoya, 40, also known by the alias LaBanco, of Cliffside Park, New Jersey, was convicted after a three-week jury trial of bank fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, and nine counts of aggravated identity theft.
Operating from his luxury apartment, prosecutors described Adekoya as a “perpetual thief” who built a vast criminal network that defrauded Americans for more than two decades.
His scheme relied on gathering publicly available information about individuals’ HELOCs at local credit unions across the country.
To evade detection, he frequently shifted operations to different regions.
Using encrypted platforms such as Telegram, Adekoya obtained sensitive personal data, including Social Security numbers, account details, and mother’s maiden names of customers with substantial equity in their HELOCs.
He then supplied this information to managers he recruited nationwide, who distributed fake driver’s licenses to lower-level operatives. These operatives impersonated customers to withdraw funds fraudulently.
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Adekoya laundered his share of the profits through accounts held in other names and reinvested stolen funds to sustain the scheme, covering travel, rentals, and fake IDs for co-conspirators. He relied on “burner” phones and encrypted apps to shield himself from law enforcement.
During sentencing, U.S. District Judge, Mae A. D’Agostino, described him as a “flagrant serial offender,” noting his history of increasingly sophisticated identity-theft and fraud crimes since 2008.
The investigation began in May 2022 when Broadview Federal Credit Union in Albany flagged suspicious impersonation transactions and referred the case to the FBI.
Adekoya’s arrest in December 2023 led to indictments against 13 co-conspirators, all of whom pleaded guilty.
Despite attempting to wipe his phone during an FBI raid, agents seized multiple burner devices and luxury assets purchased with illicit proceeds, including Rolex watches, a $51,000 Tiffany engagement ring, designer items, and $26,000 in a laundering account.
These have since been forfeited to the government.
In addition to his prison term, Adekoya was ordered to serve five years of supervised release and pay over $2.2 million in restitution.
He also faces removal from the United States after completing his sentence.
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