A federal court in the United States has sentenced a Nigerian citizen, Tochukwu Albert Nnebocha, to eight years’ imprisonment for his involvement in a prolonged cross-border inheritance fraud scheme that preyed on elderly and at-risk Americans.
In a statement released by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), the 44-year-old was found guilty of taking part in a conspiracy that swindled more than 400 victims nationwide, resulting in losses exceeding $6 million.
The DOJ noted that the scheme, which operated for over seven years, relied on a complex international network that distributed hundreds of thousands of customized letters to senior citizens, falsely informing them of supposed multimillion-dollar inheritance claims.
“According to court documents, Tochukwu Albert Nnebocha, 44, of Nigeria, and his co-conspirators operated a lucrative transnational inheritance fraud scheme that exploited vulnerable people in the United States,” the statement said.
The letters typically claimed to be from representatives of a Spanish bank, informing recipients that a deceased relative had left them a substantial inheritance. Victims were then instructed to make several payments for supposed delivery fees, taxes and other charges before they could access the fictitious funds.
“In total, the defendant and his co-conspirators defrauded over 400 U.S. victims of more than $6 million,” the DOJ added.
Authorities disclosed that Nnebocha was arrested in Poland in April 2025 and extradited to the United States in September 2025. He later pleaded guilty in November 2025 to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.
At sentencing, the court imposed a 97-month prison term, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay more than $6.8 million in restitution to the victims.
The Department of Justice noted that the case is the second indictment linked to the international fraud scheme, adding that eight co-conspirators from the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal and Nigeria have already been convicted and sentenced.