A Pennsylvania man, Adepoju Babatunde Salako, 32, has been charged with a range of serious crimes after allegedly stealing the identities of hundreds of people to fraudulently collect millions in COVID-19 relief funds. According to an indictment from the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, Salako and unnamed co-conspirators are accused of submitting fake applications for unemployment benefits and disaster loans meant to help Americans during the pandemic.
Between July 2020 and July 2021, Salako and his partners allegedly used more than 1,000 stolen or fake identities to apply for government funds. These included fraudulent unemployment claims submitted to over 30 different state agencies and fake small business loan applications sent to the Small Business Administration (SBA). In total, they reportedly received over $5.6 million in government payments.
Authorities say Salako and his co-conspirators moved the stolen money through several bank accounts to hide where it came from. The funds were then spent or sent overseas, sometimes used to buy expensive items like cars or solar panels.
Inside the Scheme
According to federal investigators, Salako used people-finder websites like TruthFinder to look up personal information, including names and addresses of real Colorado residents. He then used this stolen data to file about 15 fake unemployment insurance claims with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) between January 4 and March 20, 2021.
One of these claims led to a direct payment of $649 to Salako. In addition, CDLE paid $15,431 into bank accounts under his control based on other claims submitted by a co-conspirator. The names used in these applications belonged to innocent individuals who had no idea their identities were being misused.
The scheme wasn’t limited to Colorado. Salako is also accused of helping file fake claims in several other states, including Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and New York. These applications followed the same pattern—using fake or stolen personal details to trick state systems into approving and paying out benefits.
Salako is also charged with submitting at least 10 fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications to the SBA and one fake Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan application. In the PPP case, he used the name of a business called “Turn-Turn-Turn Woodturning”, which was tied to the stolen identity of a resident in Nevada.
The Charges and Legal Process
Salako is facing a total of 12 federal charges, including:
- Six counts of wire fraud
- One count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud
- One count of conspiracy to commit money laundering
- Four counts of aggravated identity theft
Wire fraud refers to the use of electronic communication, like the internet or phone, to commit a fraud. Money laundering involves trying to hide the origin of money gained through illegal activity. Aggravated identity theft is a serious crime that involves using someone else’s personal data to commit fraud.
Salako made his initial court appearance on June 13, 2025, in Colorado before Magistrate Judge Scott T. Varholak. During the hearing, he was informed of the charges against him.
The case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, IRS Criminal Investigation, and Colorado’s Department of Labor and Employment. The Economic Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case.
As a reminder, under U.S. law, Adepoju Babatunde Salako is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
