Indiana woman agrees to repay $58,000 in computer fraud scheme that targeted Mandan man

Bountouraby Kaba, 30, under the terms of a pretrial diversion agreement maintains her not guilty plea but has 60 days to make nearly $58,000 in restitution, according to court documents. A charge of computer fraud and two counts of theft will be withdrawn after a year if she doesn’t commit a misdemeanor or felony, the document states.

Kaba, Morton County State’s Attorney Allen Koppy and defense attorney Philip Becher signed the agreement Monday. South Central District Judge James Hill signed off on the deal Tuesday. Kaba’s trial was to start Wednesday.

Authorities in September 2022 alleged Kaba used an altered email address to get the Mandan man to wire the money to her account. He was in the process of purchasing property in northwest Mandan and believed the emails, complete with wiring instructions, were from the title company handling his transaction.

The alteration to the email address changed a suffix of “.com” to “.cam,” according to police. Kaba somehow gained access to the title company’s email document format. It’s unclear how Kaba might have known the man was working on the land deal or was about to transfer money. The title company confirmed to police that its email account had not been hacked, authorities said.

Police Detective Josh Scherr said during the investigation that “It looked like a legitimate email in all aspects.” Scherr was granted a search warrant for the recipient account and received documents that showed the money went to the account of Fatou Shop in Indianapolis. Kaba’s name was linked to the account.