The United States has frozen the assets and properties of eight Nigerians accused of having links to Boko Haram and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, according to a document released by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control .
The 3,000-page document, dated February 10, also identified individuals sanctioned for cybercrime-related offences and other security threats . It serves as a reference tool providing notice of actions taken against Specially Designated Nationals whose property and interests are blocked as part of counter-terrorism efforts .
“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. He was identified as having ties to Boko Haram and was among six Nigerians convicted in 2022 for setting up 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 .
Others designated include Babestan Oluwole Ademulero, born March 4, 1953, who appeared under several aliases including Wole A. Babestan and Olatunde Irewole Shofeso .
Abu Abdullah ibn Umar Al-Barnawi, also known as Ba Idrisa, reportedly born between 1989 and 1994 in Maiduguri, Borno State, was flagged under terrorism-related sanctions .
Abu Musab Al-Barnawi, also referred to as Habib Yusuf, was identified as a Boko Haram leader and sanctioned under terrorism provisions .
Khaled Al-Barnawi, born in 1976 in Maiduguri, was linked to Boko Haram and listed under aliases including Abu Hafsat and Mohammed Usman .
Ibrahim Ali Alhassan, born January 31, 1981, and reported to reside in Abu Dhabi, was also linked to Boko Haram .
Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad 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, was listed under CYBER2 sanctions for cybercrime-related offenses .
The sanctions mean that all property and interests of these individuals within US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them . Nigerians on the US Treasury sanctions list face asset freezes under Executive Order 13224 .
The United States officially designated Boko Haram as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation in 2013 . According to the US State Department, the group is responsible for numerous attacks in northern and northeastern Nigeria, as well as in the Lake Chad Basin, that have killed thousands of people since 2009 .
The pronouncement comes on the heels of recent recommendations by US lawmakers for visa bans and asset freezes on former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, and Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore over alleged religious freedom violations . The proposed legislation, titled the “Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026,” was introduced by five Republican lawmakers .
