Two men have been indicted for allegedly scamming Fresno County out of more than $1.5 million by pretending to be part of a local nonprofit organization. The suspects, Jafaar September Nyangoro, 52, from Franklin, Tennessee, and Peter Bah Acha, 45, from Berlin, face serious charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California, the scheme took place in 2020. The men, along with others who have not been named, gained access to an email account belonging to a director of a Fresno nonprofit. They used this email to send fake invoices to the county and requested payments to a bank account they controlled.
Over several weeks in the fall of that year, Fresno County made payments totaling over $1.5 million to Nyangoro’s account. However, the fraud was uncovered when a bank involved in the transactions reversed several payments due to suspicions of fraud. Realizing the scheme was falling apart, Nyangoro reportedly messaged his accomplices, expressing concern about the situation.
Nyangoro is currently detained in Tennessee and is expected to appear in Fresno to face the charges. If convicted, both he and Acha could face up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 for each count of conspiracy and wire fraud.
This case highlights the ongoing issue of fraud targeting public funds, where scammers exploit vulnerabilities in nonprofit organizations and government processes.