US-based Nigerian engineer admits diverting $1.64m to family accounts

Adebanjo-Banjo-Popoola

By Goli Innocent

A Nigerian engineer based in the United States, Adebanjo Popoola, has pleaded guilty to diverting about $1.64 million in public funds meant for rehabilitating dilapidated buildings in St. Louis into bank accounts belonging to himself, his wife and his sister.

Popoola, 57, a former building inspector with the City of St. Louis, admitted to three counts of wire fraud in the U.S. District Court in St. Louis. Prosecutors said he abused his position while overseeing the Stable Communities STL and Prop NS rehabilitation programmes, directing contracts to two companies owned by his wife and sister.

According to court documents, his sister, a Texas resident who had never visited St. Louis, registered Farst Construction LLC in 2022, while his future wife established Premier Finish Contractors LLC in 2021.

Between 2023 and 2024, the two companies received more than $3.8 million in city contracts, accounting for 42 per cent of the $7.19 million disbursed under the Stable Communities STL programme.

Investigators found that several projects were either incomplete or not carried out as required, despite Popoola certifying that the work had been properly executed.

After subcontractors were paid, prosecutors said Popoola, his wife and sister shared about $1.64 million, which he admitted spending on mortgage payments, vehicle purchases and repairs, travel, his September 2023 Hawaii wedding, casino gambling, dining and other personal expenses.

Popoola also admitted falsely declaring in 2022 and 2023 that he had no personal interest in any city contract or business.

His wife and sister similarly certified that “No officer, employee, or member of the governing body of the City of St. Louis, Missouri who exercises any functions or responsibilities in connection with the carrying out of the Project to which this Contract pertains shall have any private interest, direct or indirect, in this contract.”

He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 6. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both, and he will also be required to repay the diverted funds. The case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the City of St. Louis Comptroller’s Office.

The Sun Nigeria