Idris Dayo Mustapha aka Drizzle Lomo, a British-Nigerian singer, has pleaded guilty in New York for his involvement in a sophisticated hacking scheme spanning over seven years. This scheme targeted banks and brokerages, resulting in over $6 million in losses for customers.
At a hearing presided over by U.S. District Judge Pamela Chen in Brooklyn, Mustapha, aged 33 and a Lagos, Nigeria native, admitted guilt to charges of access device fraud, conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Mustapha’s arrest occurred in the United Kingdom in August 2021, followed by his extradition to the United States in August, leading to his recent guilty plea.
With a scheduled sentencing date set for April 3, 2024, Mustapha potentially faces up to 20 years in prison, although the actual sentence might be considerably less severe.
No immediate comment was available from Mustapha’s legal representation.
The modus operandi of Mustapha and his associates involved phishing and other illicit techniques to acquire usernames and passwords and gain access to online accounts between January 2011 and March 2018. Prosecutors detailed how they transferred funds and securities from victims’ accounts to their own, executing unauthorised stock trades in hacked accounts while profiting from parallel trades in their personal accounts.
The case, formally known as U.S. v. Mustapha, is being heard in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, under case number 23-cr-00440.
