MINNEAPOLIS – Two men have been sentenced to prison for stealing more than $2 million from victims of business email compromise and romance fraud schemes, announced United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, beginning in 2016 through May 2021, Olumide Obidare, 29, and Stephen Oseghale, 29, conspired with each other to use fictitious and stolen identities to engage in business email compromise (BEC) fraud schemes and pursue fraudulent romantic relationships online. As part of the scheme, the defendants obtained false identification documents, including passports and driver’s licenses, and used them to open bank accounts at various banks throughout the United States. The defendants transferred the proceeds of their online romance fraud scams and BEC schemes to bank accounts under their control. In total, the defendants defrauded victims of approximately $2,114,893.91.
On March 14, 2022, Obidare pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Earlier today, U.S. District Court by Judge Nancy E. Brasel sentenced Obidare to 132 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $1,955,507.53 in restitution. Oseghale, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, was sentenced on August 16, 2022, to 80 months in prison followed by three years on supervised release and ordered to pay $453,889.27 in restitution.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly A. Svendsen and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Miranda E. Dugi.