U.S. federal prosecutors have charged 10 people with stealing $1.5 million from victims across the United States.

"The alleged ringleader of the group was Claudio Uche Dibe, 25, of Gardena, California, prosecutors said," writes The Register's Dan Goodin. "He was extradited last month from Canada, where he fled in 2009 after learning he was under investigation. He is charged with 15 counts of wire fraud for his part of the operation, which prosecutors said involved sending spam to thousands of potential victims."

"The defendants are accused of running a classic Nigerian 419 scheme, in which email senders pose as attorneys, diplomats, and government officials who are overseeing the disbursement of millions of dollars in inheritances," Goodin writes.

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