A Nigerian woman known online as a tech expert has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly being part of a big fraud operation that targeted US government agencies.
Sapphire Egemasi, who was active on the tech platform Devpost, was taken into custody around April 10, 2025, in Bronx, New York. Alongside her, other people were also arrested, including Samuel Kwadwo Osei, who is believed to be the leader of the group.
This arrest follows charges filed by a federal grand jury in 2024. The group is accused of being involved in internet fraud and money laundering between September 2021 and February 2023.
According to investigators, Egemasi and her Ghanaian partners planned to trick the city of Kentucky out of millions of dollars through a well-organized scam.
Authorities say Egemasi helped create fake websites that looked like real US government pages. These fake sites were used to steal login information, which helped the group move stolen money into accounts they controlled.
Before being arrested, Egemasi was living in Cambridge, UK. But officials believe she used to live in Ghana, where she may have built connections with others involved in the scheme.
She is said to have played a key technical role in the group. Her job was to lead the creation of fake websites and manage how the stolen funds were transferred.
Evidence from text messages shows that in August 2022, the group rerouted $965,000 stolen from Kentucky to a PNC Bank account.
In another case around the same time, $330,000 was moved to a Bank of America account, all part of the suspected fraud.
To cover up the source of her money, Egemasi reportedly claimed she had done internships at big companies like British Petroleum, H&M, and Zara.
On social media, she was known as the “tech queen.” She maintained a professional image on LinkedIn and shared posts showing off a fancy lifestyle.
Prosecutors say her online photos of luxury vacations to places like Greece and Portugal were likely paid for with stolen money.
Egemasi and the others arrested are now in federal custody. They are being held while they wait for their trial in Lexington, Kentucky.
If found guilty, they could each face up to 20 years in prison, large fines, and eventual deportation to their home countries after serving their sentences.
