How a Delaware business played a role in this Nigerian national's online romance scam
An internet fraudster was sentenced to over 10 years in federal prison Monday and ordered to pay over $1 million in restitution after being convicted of carrying out online romance scams and business email compromises.
The man, 33-year-old Olugbenga Lawal, is a Nigerian national who lived in Indianapolis. Lawal was convicted in August by a federal jury of conspiring to commit money laundering after a four-day trial.
Lawal, who has maintained his innocence, was sentenced to 121 months, or just over 10 years, in prison by the U.S. District Court of Delaware on Monday, Jan. 8.
The federal case involved Lawal and three others: Rita Assane, Dwight Baines and Michael Hermann, all of whom were convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Assane, Baines and Hermann pleaded guilty, but have not yet been sentenced.
According to court documents, the group would launder money derived from online romance scams and business email compromises. The bank accounts belonging to these four people received over $7 million to launder on behalf of the criminal organization, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Lawal's business, Luxe Logistics LLC, a full-service mechanical contractor in Delaware, was also named in the court documents as one way money was laundered.
The U.S. Department of Justice said that elderly people were frequent targets of the scams, many of them believing they had found love on the internet.
“The online fraud schemes perpetrated by Mr. Lawal and his co-conspirators drained senior citizens of their retirement savings and resulted in American businesses losing hundreds of thousands of dollars," U.S. Attorney David Weiss said.
Lawal would use some of the funds to buy cars and ship them to Nigeria, along with using currency exchange business transactions to move money back to his home country, according to the DOJ.
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Lawal's sentencing
During his sentencing, Lawal's lawyer, Steve Jarmon, asked the judge for leniency in his sentence due to significant life events that have happened since he was arrested in May 2022.
The judge, Maryellen Noreika, called the request from the defense of two years in prison "awfully low."
Jarmon said that while in prison, Lawal's mother died in Nigeria and his second child was born. He also said that the sooner he gets out, the quicker restitution can be paid to the victims.
The prosecution shot that down, stating that Lawal would likely be deported.
Lawal spoke, crying while stating that he felt "so bad every day."
"I've been a good man, a good boy," Lawal said, crying. "I would never hurt nobody."
He also said that he was not raised to defraud someone and reiterated his innocence.
Multiple victim statements were also shared, many stating that they felt embarrassed and ashamed for falling for the schemes.
"My world was turned upside down," said one victim.
One said that now, due to the money that was lost, she has to work 12- to 14-hour days. Another said that her life will now always be a "financial struggle."
At his sentencing, Noreika said that the conspiracy "robbed older people of their money and dignity."
Though Lawal could have spent up to 20 years in prison, he was sentenced to 121 months of imprisonment, three years of supervised release and a restitution amount of over $1.4 million. The judge also ordered a personal money judgment of $3.6 million, a direct nod to the money Lawal deposited in accounts he controlled.
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Fake social media accounts, relationships
Court documents from the case articulated a large network of money laundering schemes, which included online romance scams and business email compromises.
"It was a part of the conspiracy that its members would devise, execute, and maintain [business email compromises] and romance fraud scams against unsuspecting victims located throughout the United States," according to court documents.
The documents detailed how members would create fake social media accounts and dating websites and would carry on romantic relationships with the victims to do various acts that were a part of the scheme, including sending money. Other things victims did include receiving and shipping cash and checks, depositing and forwarding cashier's checks, and receiving fraudulent wire transfers.
Members would open bank accounts in their own name, and in the names of business entities to receive money from the online fraud, according to court documents.
Online romance scams
Men and women were victims of the online romance fraud schemes, where they believed to be in a relationship with someone who needed financial assistance.
Many times, the perpetrators meet victims online through social media and dating apps and cultivate relationships for long periods of time under false pretenses of love.
Meghan Hoerner, a professor at Rowan University and criminal defense attorney in New Jersey, said that many online romance scams are difficult to prove in the courts due to having to find the intent of a fraudulent situation.
"You have to prove that there was some sort of deception that caused the victim to engage in this transaction," Hoerner said. "My experience with the U.S. Attorney's Office is they generally don't get involved unless the amounts are very, very high."
In recent years, online fraud has increased exponentially due to technological advancements.
“Lawal shamefully helped organize and execute this extensive scheme that took advantage of our senior citizens and hurt American businesses,” said Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Sobocinski of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office.
According to Lawal's lawyer, they plan to appeal the sentencing.
Assane and Hermann both have their sentences scheduled for Feb. 1. Baines' sentencing is set for Feb. 12.
Amethyst Martinez can be found on X @martinezamethys or reached via email at aamartinez@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Nigerian national sentenced for role in online romance, business scams
