A Nigerian citizen has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy that perpetuated a series of romance and investment scams against victims across the United States, including in Western Tennessee.
Efe Egbowawa, 40, was convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering as part of a scheme that used false identities and email accounts on internet dating sites to trick people into wiring or mailing money to shell companies and fictitious agents.
According to court evidence, from 2017 to approximately November 2021, conspiracy members assumed false identities on email, social media, gaming applications, networking websites, dating websites, and other internet-based platforms in a scheme to trick victims into entering friendships and romantic relationships. The defendants then played various roles in exploiting those connections to convince their victims to send them money via wire, check, U.S. mail, and package delivery services.
As part of the conspiracy, romance scammers or ‘handlers’ posed as potential friends or romantic partners and entered online relationships with unwitting victims. The relationships usually developed quickly through social media contact, text messages, email, and phone calls. Once the victim was clearly engaged in the scam, the scammer would begin to ask for emergency financial assistance. If the victim sent money, the scammer would ask for increasingly larger amounts of financial assistance.
U.S. District Court Judge Thomas L. Parker sentenced Egbowawa to 60 months in federal prison. Ozegbe pled guilty on January 29 to conspiracy to commit money laundering and will be sentenced on May 24, 2024. Mac-Okor is scheduled for trial on August 5, 2024.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Memphis Field Office and the United States Postal Investigation Service.
United States Attorney Kevin G. Ritz thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Smith, who prosecuted this case, as well as law enforcement partners for their role in the investigation.
The indictment against Egbowawa and his co-conspirators was announced by U.S. Attorney Kevin G. Ritz, who stated that the defendants used fake identities and online aliases to lure unsuspecting victims into relationships and then exploit those connections to convince them to send money. The investigation revealed that the scammers used various tactics to trick their victims, including posing as potential friends or romantic partners and asking for emergency financial assistance.
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Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Cybercrime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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