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in Money Mules / Laundering
dallasnews.com
· 2025-12-08
Ijeoma Okoro, a 33-year-old Denton County woman, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her role in a large romance scam operation targeting elderly victims in North Texas between 2015 and 2020, with an order to pay $2.2 million in restitution. Okoro was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering; scammers used fake identities and online dating sites to build trust with divorced or widowed victims before requesting financial assistance. The operation involved 11 arrests in 2021, with several co-conspirators receiving lesser sentences ranging from 2 to 37 months
eng.lsm.lv
· 2025-12-08
Financial Literacy Week in Latvia focuses on protecting people of all ages from financial fraud, with experts noting that middle-aged individuals and young adults (18-30) are particularly vulnerable to scams promising quick profits and money muling schemes. The Bank of Latvia and partner institutions are providing educational programs for schoolchildren and adults through e-learning courses covering money management, financial planning, taxes, and social insurance. Despite common misconceptions, Latvian seniors demonstrate solid financial planning skills and are not the primary fraud victims.
electronicpaymentsinternational.com
· 2025-12-08
According to global verification platform Sumsub's 2023 research, approximately 1 in 100 digital platform users belonged to organized fraud networks that collectively engaged in multi-accounting, money laundering, and account takeovers. Fraud ring activity varied significantly by region, with Bangladesh (10.2%), Thailand (6.6%), and Vietnam (3.7%) showing elevated rates, while the US and UK reported only 0.2% each; detected networks ranged from 3 to over 750 coordinated members, including a case of Estonian cryptocurrency exchange applicants using identical fraudulent documents. Sumsub warns that fraud rings cause significantly greater damage than individual sc
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Wendy Renee Bunner, 48, of Florida pleaded guilty to money laundering for her role in defrauding a Berkeley County man with dementia alongside her husband Samuel, who previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. Together, the couple stole over $2.1 million from the elderly victim, using the funds to purchase homes, vehicles, campers, and consumer goods for their personal use. Wendy Bunner faces up to 10 years in prison while Samuel faces up to 30 years, with sentencing hearings scheduled for later in 2024.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Ijeoma Okoro, 33, from Aubrey, Texas, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $2.2 million in restitution for operating romance scams targeting elderly victims through dating websites like Match.com and Zoosk. Okoro and her coconspirators posed as romantic interests, built trust with vulnerable victims (often divorced or widowed), then fabricated emergencies requiring financial assistance and requested money they promised to repay. Four additional codefendants received sentences ranging from 24 to 37 months for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering in connection with the scheme.
aba.com
· 2025-12-08
The American Bankers Association and U.S. Postal Inspection Service launched a joint initiative to combat check fraud, which has increased 385% nationwide since the pandemic. Check fraud schemes involve stealing mail, altering checks to change payee and amount information, and draining victims' accounts. The partnership focuses on consumer education, law enforcement collaboration, and employee training, with recommendations including prompt mail collection, use of security envelopes, indelible ink on checks, and monitoring bank statements for unauthorized alterations.
the-sun.com
· 2025-12-08
An 82-year-old woman and her 91-year-old husband lost $1.46 million over six months in a sophisticated scam involving fraudsters impersonating a Wells Fargo representative and U.S. Marshal who claimed their accounts were compromised and placed them in a witness protection program. The scammers isolated the couple by threatening legal consequences if they contacted family, directing them to liquidate savings into Bitcoin and gold supposedly held in a Federal Reserve account; the couple realized the fraud in October 2023 after losing contact with the scammer, and one arrest has been made in connection with the crime.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
U.S. Justice Department and law enforcement officials attended the United Kingdom's first Global Fraud Summit in March, joining over 200 leaders from 11 countries and international organizations to address global fraud threats. The U.S. delegation participated in discussions on law enforcement collaboration, coordinated with international partners to enhance intelligence sharing and disrupt fraud networks at the source, and held bilateral meetings with Singapore and UK officials to strengthen transnational fraud-fighting efforts.
the-sun.com
· 2025-12-08
Princo Oduro, a 34-year-old former Chase bank employee from Ohio, was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for operating multiple fraud schemes that defrauded victims of $1.8 million. Using stolen personal information from at least five Chase customers, Oduro ran romance scams—posing as a soldier, medical patient, or precious metals dealer—and laundered stolen funds through PayPal accounts, including targeting a widow by falsely claiming her deceased husband had stored valuable artwork. He has been ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution.
ntd.com
· 2025-12-08
Syretta Scherer, a 42-year-old Georgia woman, was sentenced to nearly four years in prison in March for her role in a romance scam conspiracy that defrauded at least 28 seniors across multiple states of $5.8 million between February 2018 and November 2019. The scheme involved cultivating fake online relationships through dating apps, then pressuring victims to send money for fabricated emergencies; Scherer laundered approximately $1.1 million through bank accounts created under a sham company called Precise Carriers. Multiple co-conspirators were also prosecuted, with one receiving 78 months in prison and ordered to pay over $
localprofile.com
· 2025-12-08
Plano Police Detective Vidmar was honored for his role in recovering over $8 million in stolen funds from victims of sweetheart scams, business email compromises, and other fraudulent crimes through his work with the U.S. Secret Service North Texas Financial Crimes Task Force. Working with Judge Ben Smith, Vidmar secured nearly 70 expedited search and seizure warrants targeting fraudulent bank accounts in Plano, Texas, which allowed authorities to freeze assets before criminals could withdraw stolen money. The collaborative effort successfully returned 99.8% of the recovered funds to victims across the United States and Canada over a 3.5-year period.
bbc.com
· 2025-12-08
Police in the Philippines raided a scam centre north of Manila on Thursday and rescued 658 people (383 Filipinos, 202 Chinese, and 73 other foreign nationals) who were being forced to operate "love scams" or "pig butchering" schemes. The victims were trafficked under false job promises and coerced into posing as romantic partners online to manipulate targets into financial fraud, with the raid triggered by a tip from a Vietnamese man who escaped by climbing a wall and crossing a river, bearing signs of torture and electrocution.
scmp.com
· 2025-12-08
Hong Kong police arrested 122 suspects (80 men and 42 women, ages 19-80) during a 25-day operation targeting money laundering networks linked to scams totaling HK$91.5 million. The suspects, including unemployed individuals, domestic helpers, drivers, and housewives, were accused of providing "stooge accounts" and SIM cards to fraud syndicates in exchange for hundreds or thousands of dollars to collect and launder scammed funds. Police warned residents never to lend, rent, or sell their bank accounts to others, as doing so facilitates fraud and money laundering operations.
protos.com
· 2025-12-08
Philippine authorities rescued over 600 workers (383 Filipinos, 202 Chinese, and 73 other foreign nationals) from a compound in Bamban on Thursday after a Vietnamese man escaped and alerted police to the operation. The victims had been trapped and forced to conduct "pig-butchering" romance and cryptocurrency scams, where they used deception to lure victims into investing in bogus crypto platforms, often working long hours under threat and torture. The escaped individual showed signs of electrocution, and similar compounds have been discovered across Asia, with pig-butchering scams generating billions in losses globally—the FBI reported $3.3 billion in losses in the US alone,
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Boston filed a civil forfeiture action to recover approximately $2.3 million in cryptocurrency from a "pig butchering" romance scam that defrauded a Massachusetts resident of over $400,000 in spring 2023. The seized cryptocurrency from two Binance accounts was traced to fraud affecting 37 victims across the United States, with the scammer using manipulative online tactics to build trust before luring the victim into fraudulent cryptocurrency investments.
pymnts.com
· 2025-12-08
Organized "pig butchering" scam operations in Southeast Asia force tens of thousands of trafficked individuals to conduct romance and cryptocurrency investment fraud targeting foreign nationals, with scammers building trust over weeks before stealing victims' money through fake investment websites and deepfake technology. Federal authorities seized nearly $9 million in one such scheme, and financial institutions are increasingly deploying AI and machine learning solutions to combat these evolving threats, with nearly 70% of large banks now using these technologies to detect fraud.
sentinelandenterprise.com
· 2025-12-08
Two bank branch managers in Massachusetts prevented an elderly couple in their mid-70s from losing $80,000 in March 2024 after scammers posed as law enforcement, claiming the couple needed to transfer funds due to alleged illegal images and money laundering on their computer. Branch Manager Kim Giammasi at Hanscom Federal Credit Union became suspicious and required the couple to complete the transfer in person, allowing her colleague Melody Anoli to contact Billerica police, who confirmed the scam and secured the couple's accounts. The article emphasizes the importance of bank employee vigilance and provides Federal Trade Commission guidance on avoiding such schemes, including never clicking unexpected links, refusing unsolicited payment requests
patch.com
· 2025-12-08
Syretta Scherer, 42, of Georgia was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for her role in a multi-state romance scam that defrauded seniors of at least $5.8 million. Scherer laundered approximately $1.1 million of the stolen funds by creating a fake company called Precise Carriers and opening multiple bank accounts to receive money that scammers had convinced victims to send under false pretenses such as medical emergencies. From February 2018 to November 2019, she structured deposits across multiple banks and recruited others to open accounts to further obscure the money trail.
securityboulevard.com
· 2025-12-08
Romance and investment scams caused over $10 billion in reported losses in 2023, with 64,000 romance scams ($1.1 billion) and 108,000 investment scams ($4.6 billion), though actual losses are estimated at $10-80+ billion annually due to significant underreporting. Scammers use researched targeting and manipulation to build trust with victims through text messages, social media, and dating sites, increasingly leveraging generative AI to create convincing deepfakes and multilingual communications that enhance credibility. Effective prevention requires cross-industry coordination to identify and block scams at their initiation points, particularly on messaging platforms like Telegram an
nzherald.co.nz
· 2025-12-08
An Auckland man lost $569,000 in a romance scam after meeting a woman on Tinder who posed as a Singaporean investor and convinced him to send money to a Hong Kong bank account for a Bitcoin investment scheme. Despite the victim's complaints that Westpac should have flagged red flags before processing the large international transfer, the bank initially denied liability but later made a confidential "goodwill" settlement payment. The case highlights the challenge victims face when scammers operate offshore—police declined to investigate, the Banking Ombudsman refused involvement due to the amount exceeding their $350,000 threshold, and recovery proved impossible.
shorenewsnetwork.com
· 2025-12-08
Syretta Scherer, 42, from Georgia was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for her role in a multi-state romance scam that defrauded seniors of approximately $5.8 million. Scherer laundered close to $1.1 million of the conspiracy's nearly $3 million in stolen funds by creating fake bank accounts under a fictitious company and directing victims—primarily widows—to send money via wire transfer or mail based on fabricated emergencies. Operating from February 2018 to November 2019, she used structured transactions across multiple banks and recruited accomplices to open additional accounts to evade detection.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
**Summary:**
Syretta Scherer, a 42-year-old Georgia woman, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison on March 7, 2024, for her role in a romance scam conspiracy that defrauded seniors across multiple states of at least $5.8 million. Scherer laundered approximately $1.1 million of the scheme's proceeds by creating a fake company called Precise Carriers, opening multiple bank accounts at different banks, and recruiting others to deposit victim funds that were primarily stolen from widows through online romance scams conducted via app-based communication platforms between February 2018 and November 2019.
pbn.com
· 2025-12-08
A Georgia woman, Syretta Scherer, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison for her role in a romance scam that defrauded seniors across multiple states, including Rhode Island, of at least $5.8 million. Scherer laundered nearly $1.1 million of the stolen proceeds by creating a fake company called Precise Carriers and opening multiple bank accounts at different banks to receive victim funds, primarily from widows who were deceived into sending money for fabricated medical emergencies. Two co-conspirators, Sade Mills and Dominique Golden, also pleaded guilty or were sentenced in connection with the scheme.
irs.gov
· 2025-12-08
Prince Oduro of Westerville was sentenced to 102 months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering schemes spanning multiple years, including stealing bank customer information while employed at JPMorgan Chase Bank and operating online romance scams that defrauded victims of over $1.8 million. Oduro continued committing romance fraud even after his initial arrest, causing an additional $709,500 in losses, and was ordered to pay approximately $1.8 million in restitution. Victims were deceived by elaborate stories involving medical emergencies, military service, overseas construction projects, and inherited assets, with one victim alone losing $390,300.
dailyhodl.com
· 2025-12-08
Prince Oduro, a 34-year-old former JPMorgan Chase employee in Columbus, Ohio, was sentenced to 8.5 years in federal prison for stealing $1.8 million from bank customers through wire fraud and money laundering, while simultaneously operating an online romance scam where he posed as a soldier, medical patient, or gold dealer to manipulate victims into sending money. One victim alone lost approximately $400,000 after Oduro convinced her that her deceased husband had stolen valuable artwork. Oduro was initially arrested in 2022, rearrested in November 2023 for continuing his scams, and has been ordered to repay all stolen funds.
golocalprov.com
· 2025-12-08
Two men from Florida and New York—Jason Rhodes, 34, and Robert Munoz, 29—were arrested in Warwick, Rhode Island in connection with a "grandparent scam" targeting elderly residents in Warwick and Coventry after police executed a controlled money delivery on March 8, 2024. During a search of a hotel room, detectives seized evidence linking the suspects to multiple grandparent scams and a large sum of cash, with the investigation ongoing. Warwick Police are urging other potential victims throughout Rhode Island to report similar scams to their local police departments.
chroniclet.com
· 2025-12-08
I cannot provide a meaningful summary of this content. The text appears to be a collection of website interface elements (error messages, navigation prompts, and article headlines) rather than a complete article or transcript about a specific fraud case or scam. To summarize properly for the Elderus database, please provide the full article text or transcript with substantive details about the scam, victims, amounts, and outcomes.
nypost.com
· 2025-12-08
Mona Faiz Montrage, a social media influencer with 3.4 million Instagram followers, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to receive stolen money for her role in laundering over $2 million from a West Africa-based romance scam operation targeting vulnerable older adults between 2013 and 2019. The scammers used fake identities and romantic narratives to convince lonely victims to send money for various schemes, including one victim who was defrauded of $89,000 through 82 wire transfers; Montrage faces up to five years in prison and must pay $2.1 million in restitution at her May 21 sentencing.
myfox28columbus.com
· 2025-12-08
Prince Oduro, a 34-year-old from Westerville, Ohio, was sentenced to 102 months in prison for conducting romance scams and money laundering schemes between 2015 and 2020. During his employment at JPMorgan Chase Bank, Oduro stole personal information from at least five customers and used it to launder over $1 million obtained through online romance scams; he continued committing fraud even after his initial arrest in February 2022, resulting in an additional $709,500 in losses. He was ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution for his crimes.
yahoo.com
· 2025-12-08
Prince Oduro, a 34-year-old former JPMorgan Chase employee in Columbus, was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison for stealing $1.8 million from bank customers through wire fraud and money laundering between 2015 and 2020. Oduro accessed at least five customers' bank information and funneled stolen funds through PayPal accounts, which he also used to run concurrent romance scams where he posed as someone needing medical help or injured military personnel; one victim alone lost nearly $400,000. He was arrested in 2022, pleaded guilty in January 2023, but continued committing romance scams while awaiting sentencing, defr
fcpdnews.wordpress.com
· 2025-12-08
Bank imposter scams, ranked by the FTC as the top scam of 2022, involve fraudsters posing as banks via unsolicited calls or texts to request personal and banking information, with a median reported loss of $3,000 from 2019-2022. The Fairfax County Police Department advises against sharing financial information with unsolicited callers, recommends independently verifying bank contact information through official channels, and warns that legitimate institutions never request payment via gift cards, wire transfers, or remote computer access.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Michael Watts, a 68-year-old former registered broker, was sentenced to five years in federal prison for participating in a securities fraud and market manipulation scheme involving Hydrocarb Energy Corp. and other companies from 2014 to 2016. Operating from a boiler room in Melville, New York, Watts and his co-conspirators used high-pressure cold calls and lies to defraud vulnerable investors, particularly seniors on fixed incomes, inflating the stock price by over $147 million and personally dumping over $2 million in shares before the company's 2016 bankruptcy. The court ordered Watts to pay $560,000 in forfeiture and $4.
yahoo.com
· 2025-12-08
The Fairfax County Police Department reported over a dozen cryptocurrency fraud cases since January totaling more than $150,000, with individual losses ranging from $3,000 to $31,100. Scammers impersonated law enforcement, banks, and government agencies via phone calls and emails to trick victims—often elderly—into depositing money into cryptocurrency ATMs. Police recommend verifying caller identity through official channels, consulting family before transferring large sums, and noting that legitimate law enforcement never requests payment by phone or crypto.
fcpdnews.wordpress.com
· 2025-12-08
Fairfax County police reported over a dozen cryptocurrency ATM scams since early 2024, with victims losing between $3,000 and $31,100 per incident. Scammers impersonated law enforcement, banks, and government agencies via phone calls to pressure victims into depositing money into Bitcoin ATMs or purchasing gift cards. The Fairfax County Police Department advises seniors to hang up on unsolicited calls, verify caller identities through official contact information, and consult trusted family members before making financial decisions involving unfamiliar technologies or large sums.
channelnewsasia.com
· 2025-12-08
Chan Wing Onn, a 54-year-old Singaporean man, was sentenced to 16 weeks' jail after he helped launder S$48,090 ($35,820 USD) for a romance scammer posing as a South Korean woman named "Soo Kim" on Facebook. Despite receiving a police warning in June 2022 about the scam, Chan resumed contact with the fraudster and later offered his mother's bank account to receive S$20,000 stolen from victim Nicholas Choo, which he then converted to iTunes cards for the scammer. The case demonstrates how romance scams exploit victims' emotional connections to facilitate money laundering across borders.
malaymail.com
· 2025-12-08
A 47-year-old businesswoman in Terengganu lost RM202,400 to scammers who impersonated courier company representatives and police officers, claiming she was involved in money laundering and drug crimes. The perpetrators obtained her online banking credentials and instructed her to transfer funds, with 35 unauthorized transactions occurring before her family discovered the fraud in late February. Police emphasized the importance of rejecting unsolicited calls and never disclosing banking information to unknown callers.
kiro7.com
· 2025-12-08
Americans lost over $1 billion to romance scams last year, and scammers are now using an evolving variation that involves tricking victims into becoming "money mules" by offering them money (as a fake sugar daddy/mama) and then asking them to transfer funds to third parties or charities. Victims who unknowingly move stolen funds can face criminal liability and be required to repay victims, even if they never received promised money themselves. The Better Business Bureau advises stopping communication immediately, preserving evidence, notifying banks and the FBI, and treating requests for financial discussions within the first weeks of online dating as major red flags.
ice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Noel Chimezuru Agoha, a 40-year-old Maryland man, was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison in February 2019 for leading multiple fraud schemes that defrauded victims of over $1.5 million between 2015 and 2018. Agoha and his co-conspirators executed business email compromise scams by impersonating legitimate business contacts to trick victims into transferring money to fraudulent accounts, and operated romance scams on dating websites using fake profiles to extract money and property from victims. The court ordered Agoha to pay $1 million in restitution for his role in the conspiracy.
m.economictimes.com
· 2025-12-08
A 2024 report on digital banking fraud in India reveals a sharp rise in "mule accounts"—bank accounts used to receive and transfer illegally obtained funds—with the majority going unreported by financial institutions. In one Bengaluru case, 126 mule accounts linked to cybercrimes were discovered, with at least Rs 18 million passing through them; analysis showed banks detected only 11% of mule accounts accessed from suspect devices, meaning 9 out of 10 went undetected. Individuals who rent their accounts to fraudsters, whether knowingly or unknowingly, can face prosecution, and experts advise against lending account credentials for payment regardless of promised rewards
khmoradio.com
· 2025-12-08
The FBI has issued a warning to Missouri residents about 13 active scams currently targeting the state, including adoption fraud, investment schemes, business email impersonation, charity fraud, elder fraud, romance scams, ransomware attacks, and skimming at ATMs and gas stations. The advisory emphasizes that elderly Missourians are particularly vulnerable targets and recommends citizens verify legitimacy before responding to unsolicited contacts, providing funds, or clicking links from unknown sources.
nationalaccordnewspaper.com
· 2025-12-08
Six members of a fraud enterprise were arrested between October 2020 and February 2021 for orchestrating business email compromise scams, romance fraud targeting vulnerable elderly victims, and fraudulent COVID-19 relief loan applications, collectively controlling over 45 bank accounts with approximately $55 million in deposits. The defendants used spoofed emails, fake online identities, and fraudulent Small Business Administration loan applications to deceive victims and divert funds to accounts they controlled. Authorities seized luxury vehicles purchased with fraud proceeds, and the defendants face prosecution in federal court by the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigations division.
investmentexecutive.com
· 2025-12-08
According to Chainalysis research, cryptocurrency crime declined significantly in 2023, with illicit activity dropping from $39.6 billion in 2022 to $24.2 billion, driven by a 29.2% decrease in crypto scams and a 54.3% drop in hacking losses. Scammers increasingly adopted romance scam tactics to target individuals with fraudulent investment schemes, and the decline in illicit activity correlated with reduced market enthusiasm for cryptocurrency. While scams and hacks fell, ransomware attacks and darknet market activity rose in 2023, with stablecoins becoming the dominant asset for criminals, surpassing Bitcoin.
thestar.com.my
· 2025-12-08
A 66-year-old woman in Seremban lost RM173,500 in a phone scam involving callers impersonating a courier company and police officer who falsely claimed she was involved in money laundering and had an arrest warrant issued against her. The victim transferred her savings into accounts provided by the scammers before realizing the fraud when she could no longer contact them. Police are investigating the case and remind the public to verify suspicious calls through official channels.
kpmg.com
· 2025-12-08
Canadian organizations of all sizes face evolving fraud risks driven by technological advances like generative AI, cryptocurrency, and digital payment systems, with SMBs particularly vulnerable due to limited fraud prevention resources and awareness. Fraudsters employ increasingly sophisticated tactics including crypto scams, online payment fraud, social engineering attacks targeting elders, and ESG misrepresentation, with 88% of victimized Canadian SMBs experiencing internal fraud and 75% experiencing external fraud over the past five years. Organizations must strengthen their fraud prevention strategies through risk assessment, robust controls, and cross-sector partnerships to effectively counter these threats.
gobankingrates.com
· 2025-12-08
A sophisticated phone scam cost journalist Charlotte Cowles $50,000 after scammers impersonating Amazon customer service, an FTC investigator, and a CIA agent convinced her that her identity had been compromised and linked to illegal activities. The perpetrators manipulated her through fear and urgency, instructing her to withdraw cash and hand it over to an unknown individual, falsely promising it would be secured and returned as a Treasury check. The article emphasizes the importance of skepticism toward unsolicited calls, verifying caller identities through official channels, and resisting pressure tactics commonly used by scammers.
thestar.com.my
· 2025-12-08
Investment scams continue to victimize Malaysians across all education and income levels, with recent cases including a trader losing RM6.2 million to a fake investment scheme and an elderly woman losing over RM10 million to a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme. Phone scammers posing as officials also defrauded senior citizens of RM3.83 million in retirement funds and savings. Between 2019 and 2023, Malaysia recorded 14,488 investment-related fraud cases totaling RM1.34 billion in losses, prompting police and the Securities Commission to increase collaboration efforts to combat such crimes.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Noel Chimezuru Agoha, age 40, of Baltimore, was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison for orchestrating business email compromise (BEC) and romance scams that defrauded victims of over $1.5 million between 2015 and 2018. Operating with co-conspirators, Agoha used fraudulent emails impersonating business contacts and fake dating profiles to trick victims into transferring funds to drop accounts he controlled, personally obtaining approximately $111,242 in BEC proceeds and over $1 million in dating scam proceeds, and was ordered to pay $1 million in restitution.
abc6.com
· 2025-12-08
Five individuals were convicted and sentenced for operating a Nigerian-based conspiracy that defrauded elderly U.S. citizens across multiple states of over $1.7 million through romance scams, fake sweepstakes, and fraudulent rental schemes. The defendants used fake romantic relationships and false promises to manipulate victims into sending money, and each was ordered to pay approximately $455,750 in restitution with several facing deportation after serving their prison terms.
justice.gov
· 2025-12-08
Five foreign nationals, including Dotun Olawale Alonge (sentenced to 18 months in federal prison), were convicted for laundering over $1.7 million in proceeds from a Nigeria-based conspiracy that defrauded elderly U.S. citizens through romance scams, sweepstakes fraud, and rental property schemes. Victims were instructed to wire money or send cash to addresses in Rhode Island controlled by the defendants, who then moved the funds through multiple banks and businesses before sending most proceeds to Nigeria. The defendants have been ordered to pay approximately $455,750 in restitution to identified victims, with several facing deportation after their sentences.
golocalprov.com
· 2025-12-08
A Nigerian-based conspiracy defrauded elderly U.S. citizens of over $1.7 million through multiple scam methods, including romance scams on dating sites, fake sweepstakes claims, and rental property fraud. Dotun Olawale Alonge, the fifth defendant convicted in the case, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for money laundering; he and four other convicted co-conspirators were ordered to pay approximately $455,750 in joint restitution to victims, with one fugitive still at large.