馃嚦馃嚞NigeriaWest Africa
Nigerian man indicted in US for alleged $300,000 romance and email fraud schemes
via Punch Nigeria2 min read
Okeoghene Patrick Udugba, a 45-year-old Nigerian residing in Frisco, Texas, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in the United States on charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud. The indictment, announced by the United States Attorney鈥檚 Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, alleges that Udugba orchestrated overlapping romance and business email compromise schemes. As part of the romance scam, Udugba and others reportedly used social media and dating websites to establish purported romantic relationships, grooming individuals to act as money mules for cashing fraudulently obtained checks. In the business email compromise scheme, the syndicate allegedly sent spoofed emails from Nigeria, posing as representatives of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service FWS. These emails directed that FWS grant funds be used to pay fabricated invoices, falsely representing money mules as FWS contractors. As a result, FWS鈥檚 grant administrator issued payments exceeding $300,000. The case is being investigated by multiple agencies, including the FBI and the United States Postal Inspection Service. The maximum penalty for this offense under federal law is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release, and a fine. All charged individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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This summary was AI-generated from a story originally published by Punch Nigeria.
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