Babawale Jenyo, Internet Fraud Scheme, Rhode Island 2023

A pair of men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in dispersing the proceeds of international internet and email fraud schemes.

Babawale Jenyo, 33, of Warwick, was sentenced on Tuesday by U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr., to a year and a day in federal prison for operating an illegal money transmitting business.

Jenyo was first discovered by Rhode Island State Police in 2017, resulting in his arrest on May 2017 on charges that he participated in an email scam that defrauded a West Des Moines, IA, couple.

In May of 2019, Jenyo was arrested again, this time by the United States Secret Service, which determined that, even after his encounter with Rhode Island State Police, Jenyo continued to engage in illicit money transferring activities up until the date of his second arrest.

According to court documents, Abiodun Shobaloju, 29, of Baltimore, MD, who previously pled guilty to wire fraud, was sentenced by Chief Judge McConnell on April 26, 2022, to 24 months of incarceration and ordered to pay restitution to fraud victims totaling $136,431.

Shobaloju was part of a conspiracy that carried out email and romance scams that succeeded in fraudulently obtaining large sums from multiple victims. As part of his role in the conspiracy, Shobaloju provided members of the conspiracy with critical bank information, and also created a shell company and bank account to be used expressly to receive and disperse proceeds from the fraud scheme.

The cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sandra R. Hebert and Richard B. Myrus.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ri/pr/pair-sentenced-their-roles-dispersing-proceeds-internet-and-email-fraud-schemes