A 36-year-old Nigerian national, Okezie Ogbata, has been jailed for 97 months in the United States (US) for his role in a $6 million transnational inheritance fraud scheme.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) disclosed this in a statement released on Tuesday.
Ogbata was found to be a member of a group of fraudsters that sent personalised letters to elderly people across the US for several years.
The scheme defrauded over 400 individuals, mostly elderly or vulnerable people, resulting in losses of more than $6 million.
The letters falsely claimed that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left for the recipient by a family member who had died overseas years before.
Ogbata pleaded guilty to the charges and admitted to defrauding more than 400 victims of over over $6 million.
According to court documents, Ogbata and his co-conspirators deceived victims by insisting that, before receiving their supposed inheritance, they were required to pay various fees, such as delivery charges, taxes, and other costs, to avoid government scrutiny.
Ogbata and his co-conspirators collected money sent in response to the fraudulent letters through a complex web of US-based former victims, whom the defendants convinced to receive and forward funds to them or their associates.
“Victims who sent money never received any purported inheritance funds,” the statement read.
The acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Yaakov Roth, described the case as a testament to the critical role of international collaboration in tackling transnational crime.
“I want to thank our U.S. law enforcement partners, as well as those who assisted across the globe, including the Portuguese Judicial Police and Public Prosecution Service of Portugal, for their outstanding contributions to this case,” Roth said.
Also, the US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Hayden Byrne, emphasised the determination of American authorities to pursue fraudsters globally.
“The long arm of the American justice system has no limits when it comes to reaching fraudsters who prey on our nation’s most vulnerable populations, including the elderly.
“We will not allow transnational criminals to steal money from the public we serve,” Byrne said.
Acting Postal Inspector in charge of the US Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division, Steven Hodges, said: “The USPIS has a long history of protecting American citizens from these types of schemes and bringing those responsible to justice.
“Today’s sentencing is a testament to the dedicated partnership between the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, HSI, and USPIS.”
Special Agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Arizona, Francisco Burrola, condemned the exploitation of the elderly.
“It’s inconceivable to imagine any human being robbing from those who’ve spent a lifetime working and building a life and then are duped out of it all. Together, with our law enforcement partners, we will not tolerate this kind of behaviour; we will bring justice to those who have wronged and stolen from so many people,” he said.
Ogbata’s sentencing comes just days after the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced the arrest of 22 Nigerian nationals in connection with a series of sextortion schemes.
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