Two Nigerian nationals, Anthony Ibekie and Samuel Aniukwu, have been sentenced to a combined 30 years in prison by a U.S. federal court for defrauding victims of over $3.5 million through inheritance and romance scams.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice, the duo operated elaborate schemes that deceived victims into sending money under false pretenses.
Ibekie, 59, from Oswego, Illinois, was convicted on 14 counts, including wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, passport fraud, and making false statements to a bank. He was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison on Thursday by U.S. District Judge Steven C. Seeger. Aniukwu, 50, of Romeoville, Illinois, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering charges and received a 10-year sentence earlier this month.
The scams were uncovered through an undercover law enforcement investigation, which revealed that Ibekie and Aniukwu had used fake identities to manipulate victims.
“They convinced victims that they had received substantial inheritances and needed to send money to claim it,” the statement read. “In addition to the inheritance scam, the pair conducted online romance scams, communicating with victims via social media and dating websites, building trust, and then persuading them to send money.”
The fraud schemes also included a business email compromise (BEC) scam, targeting corporate email accounts to divert funds. The scams led to a total loss of $3.5 million for victims across the U.S.
An accomplice, 52-year-old Jennifer Gosha, a U.S. citizen from Oak Park, Illinois, has pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud and making false statements to federal agents. Gosha is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18.
The Department of Justice statement highlighted the severity of the crimes:
“An undercover law enforcement investigation has resulted in federal prison sentences for two Nigerian nationals residing in the Chicago suburbs who conducted online inheritance scams and other fraud schemes,” it noted.
