Pennsylvania man pleads guilty, receives prison time for 2022 PFD fraud scheme

Summary

A U.S. Attorney's Office press release from Anchorage reporting that Adepoju Babatunde Salako, 33, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania pleaded guilty to seven counts of wire fraud and was sentenced to a year and a half in prison over the 2022 Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) program of the Alaska Department of Revenue. It states that between January and February 2022 he used stolen identifying information of Alaska residents to take over myAlaska accounts and submit seven PFD applications, using a VPN to appear to be in Alaska. The state found the applications fraudulent and denied them; the attempted loss was $22,988.00. The sentence runs concurrently with his District of Colorado sentence in a COVID relief fund and money laundering case.

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska – A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty to and was sentenced Tuesday to a year and a half in prison for committing wire fraud through a 2022 Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) fraud scheme.

According to court documents, between January and February 2022, Adepoju Babatunde Salako, 33, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, devised a scheme to defraud the Alaska Department of Revenue (DOR) PFD program. Specifically, Salako fraudulently obtained the personal identifying information (PII) for legitimate Alaskan residents and submitted seven separate applications to the Alaska DOR to obtain their PFD funds. Salako was never an Alaskan resident and had never traveled to Alaska up until his arrival in the state for his sentencing in this matter.

Court documents detail that Salako created new email accounts that he controlled for each legitimate Alaska resident whose PII he fraudulently obtained. Using the PII, Salako gained control of at least seven already established “myAlaska” online accounts—the platform Alaska residents use to apply for the PFD. Once inside the accounts, Salako changed the account information to route communications from “myAlaska” directly to the email accounts he controlled for each individual. Salako also changed each applicant’s bank information to route the PFD payments to bank accounts he controlled.

Court documents further explain that Salako tried to shield his identity and location by using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to appear as though six of the seven application submissions were submitted from an Internet Protocol (IP) address in Alaska. The other application was submitted using an IP address in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Records from Salako’s personal email account showed logins from the same Philadelphia IP address.

The State of Alaska determined the applications to be fraudulent and denied the applications. In 2022, the DOR, which administers the PFD program, paid $3,284.00 to each eligible PFD applicant. But for the DOR’s diligent review of PFD applications, Mr. Salako would have successfully defrauded the State of Alaska and the seven identity theft victims of $22,988.00

Salako pleaded guilty to seven counts of wire fraud. Salako’s prison sentence will run concurrent to a related COVID relief fund and international money laundering case in the District of Colorado, in which he was sentenced to six and a half years in prison and ordered to pay $2.5 million in restitution to the victims of his crimes.

“Mr. Salako spent considerable time planning and perpetrating his scheme to defraud the Alaska PFD,” said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman for the District of Alaska. “Thanks to the great work of the Alaska Department of Revenue and FBI, he didn’t succeed; but even attempting to defraud the PFD will not be tolerated and could result in federal prison.”

“The Alaska PFD program is intended to benefit current and future generations of eligible Alaskans, not criminals like Salako who seek to exploit the program through fraud and identity theft,” said Special Agent in Charge Matthew Schlegel of the FBI Anchorage Field Office. “Despite efforts to mask his identity, Salako was identified through strong program safeguards and diligent investigative work in partnership with the Alaska Department of Revenue. This sentence reflects our commitment to safeguarding the integrity of government programs and holding fraudsters accountable for their crimes, regardless of where they reside.”

“This case should send a clear message that stealing an identity to exploit the Permanent Fund Dividend will not be tolerated,” said Department Investigations Manager Scott Stair of the State of Alaska Department of Revenue, Criminal Investigations Unit. "The Department of Revenue remains committed to protecting Alaskans from financial fraud and holding accountable anyone who seeks to profit though deception.”

The FBI Anchorage Field Office and State of Alaska Department of Revenue, Criminal Investigations Unit investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ainsley McNerney prosecuted the case.

If you suspect you've been a victim of PFD fraud, contact the Alaska Department of Revenue, Criminal Investigations Unit. Online Fraud Tips can be filed at https://pfd.alaska.gov/fraud-tip-form . You can also contact the Fraud Hotline: (907) 500-0360.

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