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Greensboro, NC Man Convicted of Defrauding Victims of Millions
A federal jury convicted defendant Olusola Olla, 50, of Greensboro, NC, on June 16, 2017, for conspiracy to commit money laundering and structuring financial transactions arising from a scheme to defraud vulnerable victims of millions of dollars.
The scheme, which operated from January 2011 to May 18, 2015, involved members of the conspiracy searching online dating websites to initiate romantic relationships with vulnerable male and female individuals. They used false stories and promises to convince the victims to give them money, including fake hospital bills, plane trips to visit the victims, and problems with overseas businesses.
Olla and the co-conspirators opened bank accounts, called "drop accounts," that received millions of dollars from the victims. Testimony at trial showed that victims provided money to the defendants as a result of the false stories and promises, either by depositing money directly into drop accounts controlled by the defendants, or by checks sent to them. Payments from victims ranged from $1,720 to $50,000.
Olla and the co-conspirators dispersed money received from the victims by transferring funds to other accounts they controlled, by obtaining cashier’s checks, and by writing checks to individuals or entities, all done to conceal the nature, source, and control of those assets. Relatedly, many of the currency transactions were "structured," or designed to avoid the filing of currency transaction reports, which financial institutions are required to file with the Internal Revenue Service for currency transactions exceeding $10,000.
Olla faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit money laundering and a maximum of 5 years in prison for structuring financial transactions. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled for Olla.
The conviction was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning and Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
This case is part of the efforts undertaken in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.
Key Facts
- State: Maryland
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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