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Ghana’s Paul Williams Anti Sentenced to 6 Years for $3.8M Money Laundering Scheme
MADISON, WIS. – In a major blow to international money launderers, Paul Williams Anti, 61, a citizen of Ghana, was sentenced to 6 years in federal prison for conspiring to launder proceeds of wire fraud.
Williams Anti pleaded guilty to the charge on March 14, 2024, and was handed down the sentence by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley. The defendant was found to have controlled 14 separate bank accounts under 9 false identities and fraudulent business names to collect and launder more than $3.8 million in proceeds from wire fraud schemes perpetrated on business and organization victims throughout the United States.
Money laundering involves using financial transactions to conceal the nature, location, source, ownership, or control of illegally obtained funds. In this case, Williams Anti used a complex web of deceit to hide his true identity, directing mail associated with the scheme to the mailbox of an elderly patient at an assisted living facility in Connecticut. He was hired to care for the patient using yet another false identity.
The investigation into Williams Anti’s activities began in October 2020, after an organization with its headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin, fell victim to a wire fraud scheme commonly referred to as a “business email compromise scheme.” The $2.4 million in losses stemmed from the organization paying invoices between October 13, 2020 and October 20, 2020, which were later determined to be altered.
Law enforcement was able to trace the proceeds from these bank accounts to 29 other wire fraud victims around the U.S., who had been defrauded by similar business email compromise schemes and in total, lost approximately $7.7 million, of which approximately $3.8 million was directed to accounts controlled by Williams Anti.
“Actions such as those taken by Williams Anti to enrich himself by laundering ill-gotten funds are reprehensible and will not be tolerated,” said HSI Chicago Special Agent in Charge Sean Fitzgerald. “HSI will continue to work closely with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to disrupt this type of conspiracy and to protect organizations and individuals from being victimized.”
“We are grateful for the work of our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to disrupt the money laundering that happens after business email compromise schemes or when other cyber-enabled fraud occurs,” said U.S. Attorney Timothy M. O’Shea. “Often, the individuals who end up with the funds are not the ones conducting the online fraud, but they are critical components to the success of these schemes.”
The case is a stark reminder of the impact of international money laundering on the U.S. economy and the importance of collaboration between law enforcement agencies to combat it.
Key Facts
- State: Wisconsin
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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