A large-scale fraud scheme involving stolen identities and fake student enrolments has allegedly cost the United States more than $200 million. Investigators have linked some of the activities to a network of Kenyan nationals.

The United States Department of Justice announced the first results of Operation Ghostbusters on Thursday. The operation is a nationwide investigation into the misuse of federal student aid. Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald said five defendants had been charged and more than $750,000 in cryptocurrency seized through a network associated with Kenyan nationals.

According to the department, criminals stole the personal information of American citizens and used it to submit fraudulent applications for federal student loans and grants. The identities were then used to enrol fake “ghost students” in colleges so they could receive financial aid, even though the real people were unaware and the fake students never attended classes.

After the funds were released, the money was redirected to bank accounts controlled by the criminal network. US-based individuals acted as money mules to receive the payments and transfer them overseas, including to Kenya. Cases have been recorded in New Jersey, Virginia and Nebraska involving both American and Kenyan suspects.

The FBI has identified more than $32 million in losses from similar schemes, with millions more suspected. Investigators also flagged over 830,000 potentially fraudulent Federal Student Aid identification numbers linked to nearly $130 million. The department said the investigation is ongoing and that it will continue working with Kenyan authorities to recover funds and pursue suspects.