A former St. Louis city building inspector pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud In federal court Tuesday after directing funds to fix up buildings into his own pocket.
Adebanjo “Banjo” Popoola pleaded guilty to the three felonies as part of a plea agreement, one in which prosecutors didn’t drop any charges.
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The June 30 guilty plea is the latest in a year-and-a-half-long saga that started in December 2024, when SLM reported that Popoola was connected to Farst Construction, which had received $1 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds through city programs intended to stabilize vacant buildings. State records showed Farst had originally been set up by Popoola’s sister, a nurse residing in Texas who prosecutors now say never set foot in St. Louis. Popoola was one of the two inspectors responsible for overseeing the very programs that awarded the company contracts for the ARPA-funded work.
A day later, SLM reported that Popoola had ties to a second major contractor, Premier Finish Contractors, which had received another roughly $1.35 million through the same programs. State and property records showed the company was organized by Tanya Garrett, who was married to Popoola and owned a Wildwood home with him. Two days after the initial reporting, Popoola resigned. Then-Mayor Tishaura Jones paused the stabilization programs, launched an internal review, and later asked the FBI and Missouri state auditor to investigate. (Neither Popoola’s wife nor his sister were in court today, and neither has been charged in the matter.)
Federal prosecutors ultimately hit Popoola with an indictment in March 2026, accusing him of using his position to steer city contracts to companies he himself created or had others create for him. Prosecutors alleged that in total, he directed nearly $4 million in contracts to construction LLCs that he ultimately controlled and profited from.
According to the indictment, Popoola personally pocketed about $1.67 million after subcontractors were paid. That money was used on, among other things, airline tickets to Hawaii for his 2023 wedding and repairs to his Lexus RX 350.
The 57-year-old Popoola arrived at the federal courthouse Tuesday afternoon wearing a dark gray button up, slacks, and athletic dress shoes. He hustled inside without taking questions from the media.
The plea agreement came with no sentencing recommendation from prosecutors, though it was noted that Popoola faces an increased sentence because the crime question caused a loss of more than $1.5 million, involved a disaster or emergency program, and because he was in a position of trust.
However, Popoola’s attorneys are disputing that he was the leader or organizer of the scheme.
After the hearing, Assistant United States Attorney Hal Goldsmith, who handles many public corruption cases in the region, including the one against Popoola, spoke briefly with reporters. He described Popoola as a “long-time trusted employee..who took advantage of the system and defrauded programs that were meant to serve the people of the city.”
Popoola will be sentenced October 6.
