Reasons US froze assets of eight Nigerians

The United States Government has frozen the assets and properties of eight Nigerians accused of having connections to Boko Haram and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as well as involvement in cybercrime-related activities.
The action was detailed in a 3,000-page document dated February 10 and released by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), an arm of the United States Department of the Treasury.

The document was made public on Monday.
The publication also identified individuals sanctioned for cybercrime and other security-related offences.
The development follows recent recommendations by the US Congress for visa bans and asset freezes against individuals and groups accused of violating religious freedom and persecuting Christians in Nigeria.
Among those earlier recommended by US lawmakers for visa restrictions and asset freezes were former Kano State governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore.
The OFAC document, titled “Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List,” includes individuals of various nationalities and entities whose assets have been blocked, serving as a reference for compliance with US sanctions programmes.
It explained that the measures form part of broader efforts to block the property and interests of designated persons and prevent financial transactions involving them.
“This publication of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is designed as a reference tool providing actual notice of actions by OFAC with respect to Specially Designated Nationals and other persons whose property is blocked, to assist the public in complying with the various sanctions programmes administered by OFAC,” the agency stated.
Among those listed is Salih Yusuf Adamu, also known as Salihu Yusuf, born August 23, 1990, in Nigeria. He was identified as having ties to Boko Haram and was reported to hold a Nigerian passport.
Yusuf was among six Nigerians convicted in 2022 for establishing a Boko Haram cell in the United Arab Emirates to raise funds for insurgents in Nigeria. The group was found guilty of attempting to transfer $782,000 from Dubai to Nigeria.
Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, born March 4, 1953, in Nigeria, was designated under SDNTK sanctions and listed under multiple aliases.
Also designated was Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, reportedly born between 1989 and 1994 in Maiduguri, Borno State, and flagged under terrorism-related sanctions.
Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, also known as Habib Yusuf, was listed with varying birth years between 1990 and 1995 and identified as a Boko Haram leader.
Khaled (or Khalid) Al-Barnawi, born in 1976 in Maiduguri, Nigeria, appeared twice in the publication and was linked to Boko Haram under several aliases.
Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, born January 31, 1981, in Nigeria, was listed as residing in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and associated with Boko Haram.
Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Mainuki, also known as Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki, born in 1982 in Mainok, Borno State, was identified as having ties to ISIL.
Nnamdi Orson Benson, born March 21, 1987, in Nigeria, was listed under CYBER2 sanctions and reported to hold a Nigerian passport.
Their inclusion on the OFAC list underscores Washington’s continued efforts to combat terrorism financing and cyber threats.
The sanctions mean that all property and interests belonging to the named individuals within US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them under Executive Order 13224.
The United States designated Boko Haram a foreign terrorist organisation in 2013. According to the United States Department of State, the group has carried out numerous attacks in northern and northeastern Nigeria, as well as in parts of the Lake Chad Basin in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, resulting in thousands of deaths since 2009.
Under US law, the Secretary of State determines countries that have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism, with such designations guided by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, the Arms Export Control Act, and the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
In October 2025, for the second time, US President Donald Trump announced that Nigeria would be added to the State Department’s list of “Countries of Particular Concern,” citing alleged religious persecution.
Nigeria was first designated as a Country of Particular Concern in 2020 under Trump, but the designation was later removed by former President Joe Biden shortly after he assumed office.