Related Federal Cases
Darlington Akporugo, Romance Scam, Fulshear TX, 2022
A Nigerian man residing in Fulshear, Texas, has been accused of running a romance scam that targeted over a dozen elderly Americans, resulting in losses of approximately $3,123,073, according to U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.
Darlington Akporugo, 46, is set to appear in court on allegations he conspired with Jasmin Sood, 35, also of Fulshear, to commit wire and mail fraud.
The indictment alleges that between 2015 and 2022, the scammers used fictitious personas and sought out and contacted elderly victims online who were often widowed. They used social networking and internet dating platforms and communicated with victims using email, text message, and telephone to gain their trust.
The scammers would then deceive their victims into transferring large sums of money to various mailing addresses and bank accounts, many of which were controlled by Akporugo and Sood, according to the charges.
After establishing trust with the victims online, Akporugo and Sood allegedly approached at least one victim in the Houston area in person and convinced her to give Akporugo control of her banking access devices.
If convicted, both Akporugo and Sood face up to 30 years imprisonment for each of the wire fraud counts and conspiracy. Akporugo also faces an additional 10 years on the fraud in connection with an access device and another mandatory two years if convicted of aggravated identity theft.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Grace Murphy is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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