8 Nigerians Hit with US Sanctions Amid Boko Haram, Cybercrime Probe

Eight Nigerians were on Monday sanctioned by the United States over alleged link to the Islamic Sect, Boko Haram, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

The United States however, frozen the assets and properties of the eight Nigerians.

This information was contained in a 3,000-page document dated February 10, released by the United States Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

The document also identified individuals sanctioned for cybercrime-related offences and other security threats.

The move was sequence to the recent recommendations by the US Congress for visa bans and asset freezes on persons and groups accused of violations of religious freedom and persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

The OFAC document, titled “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List,” detailed individuals of other nationalities and entities whose assets had been frozen, serving as a reference tool.

“This publication of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is designed as a reference tool providing actual notice of actions by OFAC with respect to Specially Designated Nationals and other persons (which term includes both individuals and entities) whose property is blocked, to assist the public in complying with the various sanctions programmes administered by OFAC,” the agency said.

Among those listed is Salih Yusuf Adamu, also known as Salihu Yusuf, born on August 23, 1990, in Nigeria. Yusuf was identified as having ties to Boko Haram and was reported to hold a Nigerian passport.

Another individual, Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, born on March 4, 1953, in Nigeria, was designated under SDNTK sanctions.

Also designated was Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, also known as Ba Idrisa. He was reportedly born between 1989 and 1994 in Maiduguri, Borno State, and was flagged under terrorism-related sanctions.

Khaled (or Khalid) Al-Barnawi, born in 1976 in Maiduguri, Nigeria was linked to Boko Haram and listed under several aliases, including Abu Hafsat and Mohammed Usman.

Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, born January 31, 1981, in Nigeria, was listed with a Nigerian passport. He was reported to reside in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and was linked to Boko Haram.

Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Mainuki, also known as Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki, was born in 1982 in Mainok, Borno State. He was identified as having ties to ISIL.

Nnamdi Orson Benson, born March 21, 1987, in Nigeria, was listed under CYBER2 sanctions and was reported to hold a Nigerian passport.

The inclusion of these names in the OFAC list highlights Washington’s continued focus on countering terrorism financing and cyber threats.

The sanctions mean that all property and interests of these individuals within US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.

Nigerians listed under the US Treasury sanctions face asset freezes under Executive Order 13224.

Recall that Trump, in a post on X, explained that Nigeria would be placed on a religious freedom watchlist, alleging that Christians were facing persecution and being killed by Muslims.

The United States officially designated Boko Haram a foreign terrorist organisation in 2013. According to the US State Department, the group is responsible for numerous attacks in the northern and northeastern regions of the country, as well as in the Lake Chad Basin in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, that have killed thousands of people since 2009.