Nigerian citizen, Saheed Sunday Owolabi, a has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for “defrauding victims from the United States and laundering over $1.5 million to Nigeria”.
Owolabi was found guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to a statement published on Tuesday by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, he posed as a woman online to establish relationships with men in the US as part of a romance scam.
The statement noted that Owolabi and his accomplices “used these fake relationships to cheat victims into sending money and personal information”.
“Inmate Owolabi and others used bank accounts provided by the victims to launder money from other fraudulent operations and stole more than $120,000 from a victim in the EDNC, among many other victims,” the statement reads.
“In sentencing Inmate Owolabi to 15 years in prison, Chief Judge Myers determined that Inmate Owolabi was a leader or organizer within an extensive organization, engaged in sophisticated money laundering, and caused substantial financial hardship to victims from his schemes.
“At sentencing, the prosecution highlighted images discovered on Inmate Owolabi’s phone at the time of his arrest showing how he greedily blew this stolen money.”
Prosecutors told the court that Owolabi’s group gained unauthorised access to details of a pending home purchase and sent fraudulent emails directing the victim to transfer funds into accounts under their control.
They also presented evidence showing how he spent the proceeds extravagantly.
Reacting to the ruling, Ellis Boyle, US attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, said individuals who defraud citizens will be held accountable regardless of their location.