United States v. Iyamu

356 F. Supp. 3d 810
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maine
DecidedDecember 20, 2018
DocketCriminal No. 18-87(1) ADM/SER
StatusPublished

This text of 356 F. Supp. 3d 810 (United States v. Iyamu) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maine primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Iyamu, 356 F. Supp. 3d 810 (D. Me. 2018).

Opinion

ANN D. MONTGOMERY, U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE

I. INTRODUCTION

This matter is before the undersigned United States District Judge for consideration of Defendant Ihenvbiru Frank Iyamu's ("Iyamu") Objection [Docket No. 77] to Magistrate Judge Steven E. Rau's September 24, 2018 Report and Recommendation ("R & R") [Docket No. 73]. In the R & R, Judge Rau recommends denying Iyamu's Motion to Suppress Evidence Obtained as a Result of Search and Seizure ("Motion to Suppress Evidence") [Docket No. 35], and granting in part and denying in part Iyamu's Motion to Suppress Statement [Docket No. 36]. After a de novo review of the record, and for the reasons stated below, Iyamu's Objection is granted in part and denied in part.

II. BACKGROUND

A. Superseding Indictment

Iyamu is charged in a Superseding Indictment [Docket No. 50] with one count of unauthorized access of a protected computer in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1030(a)(4), one count of conspiracy to access a protected computer in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349. The Superseding Indictment alleges that from about 2012 to 2017, Iyamu and two co-defendants (collectively, "Defendants"), all citizens of Nigeria, engaged in a scheme and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, identity theft, money laundering, and fraud against the United States and other victims. Superseding Indictment ¶ 1. Defendants sent fraudulent "phishing" emails to unsuspecting recipients who were misled into providing sensitive information such as user names and passwords. Id. ¶ 2. The user names and passwords were then used to gain access to the recipients' email accounts and to send emails from those accounts to prospective victims of the fraud scheme. Id. ¶ 5.

One of the phishing email recipients misled into providing information was a U.S. Postmaster in Minnesota who responded to a fraudulent email in November 2013. Id. ¶ 3. Using the information from the *814Postmaster, Defendants gained access to Postal Service computer servers that processed the Postal Service's email traffic. Id. ¶¶ 3-4. From November 2013 to April 2017, Postal Service email accounts were used to send emails to intended victims of the scheme. Id. ¶ 5. Defendants caused victims to send hundreds of thousands of dollars via bank transfers, Western Union, MoneyGram, PayPal, and other means. Id.

B. Search Warrant

On March 13, 2018, federal agents obtained a search warrant authorizing the search of a home in Acworth, Georgia. See Gov't Ex. 1 ("Search Warrant"). The search warrant was based on the March 13, 2018 affidavit of Cole Ashcraft ("Agent Ashcraft"), a Special Agent with the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General. Id. at 00003443-86 ("Ashcraft Aff."). The affidavit described the fraudulent scheme and stated that a laptop computer with a Dell serial number had gained unauthorized access to the to the Postal Service email accounts. Ashcraft Aff. ¶ 65. The laptop associated with the Dell serial number had been purchased on eBay by a user with an email address that was strikingly similar to that on Iyamu's visa application. Id. ¶¶ 65-66. The purchaser's email account included a recovery phone number and email address that matched those listed on Iyamu's visa application. The purchaser paid for the laptop using a PayPal account. Id. The phone number associated with the PayPal account matched the phone number on Iyamu's visa application. Id. Investigators corresponded undercover with co-conspirators in the scheme and received calls from the telephone number listed on Iyamu's visa application. Id. ¶ 62.

The affidavit further averred that investigators surveilled a home in Acworth, Georgia for several weeks and saw Iyamu repeatedly visit the house in a pattern "consistent with residence, or at least frequent presence." Id. ¶ 81. A vehicle registered to Iyamu was also frequently parked outside the home. Id. Investigators also observed Iyamu talking on a cell phone and transporting the phone in a vehicle.

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Bluebook (online)
356 F. Supp. 3d 810, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-iyamu-med-2018.