The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has brought two Nigerian men, 26-year-old Adebola Festus Adekunle and 24-year-old Mudasiru Afeez Olawale, to the United States to face prosecution over alleged sextortion and sexual exploitation of minors.
FBI Director, Kash Patel, announced the development in a statement on X on Friday, saying the two men were arrested in Nigeria in 2023 and had been transferred to US custody after spending three years overseas.
Patel said the suspects were allegedly involved in sextortion schemes targeting minors, with one of the cases allegedly resulting in the death of a child.
“This FBI has brought back two high-value targets from Nigeria to the United States to face justice for alleged sextortion crimes targeting minors,” Patel said.
“Adebola Festus Adekunle and Mudasiru Afeez Olawale were arrested in Nigeria in 2023 and are now on US soil.
“The charges include sexual exploitation of minors, coercion and enticement, extortion, distribution and production of child sexual abuse material, and other offences.
“One of these alleged schemes resulted in the death of a child. They were overseas for three years. Now they’re back on U.S. soil to answer for the charges against them.”
According to the US Department of Justice, Adekunle was extradited to face prosecution in a case involving the alleged financially motivated sextortion of a Mississippi minor, which prosecutors say led to the victim’s death.
He faces charges including sexual exploitation of a minor resulting in death, production of child sexual abuse material, coercion and enticement of a minor, and interstate threats with intent to extort.
The sexual exploitation charge carries a potential life sentence if he is convicted.
Olawale was separately extradited to face charges connected to the alleged sextortion of minors, including allegations involving the death of a teenage victim in North Carolina.
He was charged with offences relating to sexual exploitation of minors, coercion and enticement, distribution of child sexual abuse material and interstate threatening communications.
The two men were arrested in Nigeria in August 2023 as part of a wider FBI operation targeting individuals accused of sexually extorting minors in the United States.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) facilitated their extradition from Nigeria to the U.S. on August 26, 2026, following investigations by American authorities.
The US Justice Department said the cases form part of broader efforts to dismantle foreign criminal networks involved in financially motivated sextortion and prosecute individuals allegedly linked to the deaths of American teenagers.
