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The United States has frozen the assets and properties of eight Nigerians accused of links to Boko Haram and ISIL.
The sanctions were listed in a 3,000-page document by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), known as the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List). It names individuals and organizations subject to US sanctions.
Some of those listed are accused of terrorism, while others face allegations of cybercrime and security threats. The move follows US Congress recommendations for visa bans and asset freezes targeting people accused of violating religious freedom and persecuting Christians in Nigeria.
Under Executive Order 13224, all assets these individuals hold in the US are frozen, and Americans are prohibited from doing business with them.
Key individuals on the list:
- Salih Yusuf Adamu (aka Salihu Yusuf, born 1990) – Linked to Boko Haram. Convicted in 2022 in the UAE for setting up a Boko Haram cell to raise funds and attempting to transfer $782,000 to Nigeria.
- Babestan Oluwole Ademulero (aka Wole A. Babestan / Olatunde Irewole Shofeso, born 1953) – Listed under terrorism-related sanctions.
- Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi (aka Ba Idrisa, born 1989–1994, Maiduguri) – Listed under terrorism sanctions.
- Abu Musab Al-Barnawi (aka Habib Yusuf, born 1990–1995) – Boko Haram leader.
- Nnamdi Orson Benson (born 1987) – Accused of cybercrime; holds a Nigerian passport.
The remaining three individuals are also linked to terrorism or cybercrime.
The US government says these sanctions block any assets in its jurisdiction and warn that Americans cannot transact with the listed individuals.
