Friday, December 20, 2024 - A US court has found a Nigerian US-based man, Oluwole Adegboruwa, 54 and his accomplice, Enrique Isong, 49, guilty of masterminding a multi-million dollar dark web drug trafficking operation, and has sentenced them to a combined 40 years in jail term.
This was revealed in a statement on the website of the United States
Attorney’s Office, District of Utah.
While Adegboruwa was sentenced to 30 years of imprisonment, he was also
ordered supervised release for life and the forfeiture of over $20 million.
The $20 million forfeiture is among the largest forfeitures holding a
defendant financially accountable for his crimes in the history of the U.S.
Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah.
The sentence, imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Jill N. Parish, comes
after a jury found Adegboruwa and his co-defendant Isong, guilty in May 2024 of
multiple federal crimes, including conspiracy to distribute oxycodone and money
laundering.
On October 23, 2024, Isong was sentenced to ten years of imprisonment
and three years of supervised release.
According to court documents, evidence presented at trial, and
statements made at Adegboruwa’s sentencing hearing, from October 2016 through
May 2019, Adegboruwa, sold more than 300,000 oxycodone pills on dark web
marketplaces to customers throughout the United States.
The jury found that Adegboruwa organized and supervised a continuing
criminal enterprise that earned approximately $9,112,471 in drug proceeds.
The jury found that Adegboruwa was unquestionably in charge of the
illicit narcotics operation. Each member of his enterprise served in different
capacities.
Some were tasked with locating and procuring pharmacy grade pills that
were then re-sold through various dark web marketplaces. Others were involved
in packaging the pills and/or shipping them to customers.
At trial, Adegboruwa admitted that he controlled sales on the dark web
markets and the monetary accounts, including the cryptocurrency accounts
through which the enterprise received the bulk of its profits.
Adegboruwa also admitted he was the one who decided to start his online
dark web drug sales operation.
“Protecting the community from illicit drugs and dismantling drug
trafficking operations is a priority for my office and our law enforcement
partners,” said U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah. “We
will continue to prosecute and seek justice for these crimes.”
“This case further demonstrates that true anonymity on the dark web is a
myth,” said U.S. Postal Inspection Services State Phoenix Division Inspector in
Charge Glen Henderson. “U.S. Postal Inspectors remain steadfast in their
commitment to dismantling drug trafficking operations, ensuring the safety of
USPS customers and employees alike.”
“Adegboruwa’s criminal drug enterprise was complex, sophisticated, and
generated millions of dollars in profits concealed in cryptocurrency
transactions. This sentencing is a stark reminder that the DEA is relentless in
the pursuit of justice, and that drug traffickers cannot hide their illicit
activities even in the secretive expanses of the dark web,” said DEA Rocky
Mountain Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Pullen.
“Money laundering continues to be a top investigative priority for
IRS-CI,” said Special Agent in Charge Carissa Messick for IRS Criminal
Investigation’s Phoenix Field Office. “The forfeiture amount in this case alone
highlights the magnitude of the investigation conducted by IRS-CI special
agents, its impact on our community, and IRS-CI’s relentless commitment to
uncovering illegal schemes by following the money.”
Assistant United States Attorneys Thaddeus J. May, Jennifer E. Gully, and Stewart M. Young of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.
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