Ajibola Oduntan, a UK resident with an Irish passport, has been arrested by the FBI and charged with wire fraud for allegedly using stolen credit cards to purchase and resell over $100,000 worth of tickets to the musical “Wicked,” leading to significant losses for the Kentucky Performing Arts venue.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Ajibola Oduntan, a 47-year-old UK resident holding an Irish passport, has been indicted on federal wire fraud charges for allegedly orchestrating an international ticket scam that defrauded Kentucky Performing Arts (KPA) of over $100,000. The arrest follows a lengthy FBI investigation into fraudulent purchases made during the run of the Broadway musical “Wicked” in late 2023.
According to court documents, Oduntan allegedly used stolen credit card information from U.S. citizens to purchase at least 61 premium tickets from KPA. He then resold them on the StubHub platform. The scheme unraveled when the unauthorized purchases led to chargebacks from credit card companies, forcing the venue to absorb the full financial loss.
Special Agent Daniel W. Heath traced the illicit proceeds through a complex network, uncovering nearly $350,000 funneled from StubHub into various PayPal accounts between January 2023 and July 2024. These funds were subsequently transferred to Oduntan’s financial accounts in Ireland. Despite his use of VPNs to mask his digital identity, a critical breakthrough occurred when Oduntan applied for a U.S. visa; the phone number he provided matched one directly associated with the fraudulent transactions.
The FBI, which typically screens all U.S. visa applications for criminal records, applied to Magistrate Judge Regina S. Edward for an arrest warrant to apprehend Mr Oduntan on U.S. soil.
His warrant was granted and sealed until he landed in the U.S. in late August. Law enforcement agents swiftly arrested him and are currently holding him at the Grayson County Detention Centre after he pleaded not guilty to wire fraud and wire fraud conspiracy.
He was charged by a grand jury on September 3, but his trial is scheduled to begin on November 10.