- US District Judge Charlotte Sweeney sentenced Nigerian national Adetomiwa Akindele to nearly six years in prison for a $1.6 million romance scam
- Akindele posed as a wealthy businessman, convincing an elderly American woman to transfer over $1.6 million through cryptocurrency accounts
- After serving his sentence, Akindele will be deported to Nigeria and must repay $1,692,945 in restitution
A United States federal court has sentenced a 37-year-old Nigerian, Adetomiwa Seun Akindele, to five years and eleven months in prison for defrauding an elderly American woman of $1.6 million in a romance scam.
He will be deported to Nigeria after completing his sentence.
Source: Getty Images
Nigerian romance scammer faces US deportation
Judge Charlotte Sweeney of the US District Court handed down the sentence after Akindele pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
He was also ordered to repay $1,692,945 to the victim and to forfeit an equivalent amount as part of the judgment.
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According to a statement released by the US Department of Justice, Akindele operated the scheme between January and October 2018.
He posed as a wealthy Italian-American businessman named Frank Labato and contacted the victim through email in February of that year.
By March, they had begun speaking on the phone, during which he presented fabricated details and photographs to strengthen his false identity.
Prosecutors revealed that Akindele convinced the victim that he was facing a serious financial crisis linked to his supposed business dealings abroad.
Source: UGC
According to official account, he persuaded her to open a cryptocurrency exchange account and transfer over $1.6 million to accounts he controlled. Investigators said he converted the funds into cryptocurrency, laundered them through several crypto addresses, and eventually deposited the money into his personal bank accounts.
Cryptocurrency fraud leads to federal prison
The court heard that Akindele issued three fraudulent promissory notes during the scam to assure the victim she would be repaid.
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The ruse collapsed when federal investigators traced the transactions, leading to his arrest in Minnesota.
“Akindele fraudulently represented to the victim that he would repay her for the requested ‘loans’ to his business,” the Department of Justice said in its statement.
The case adds to a growing list of fraud convictions involving Nigerians in the United States.
Earlier this week, another Nigerian, Ehis Akhimie, was sentenced to more than eight years in prison for his role in a $6 million inheritance fraud that targeted hundreds of elderly Americans.
US authorities continue to warn citizens about online romance scams, which have cost victims billions of dollars globally.
Akindele will remain in federal custody until he completes his sentence before being handed over to immigration officials for deportation.
List of African immigrants scheduled for deportation from US
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the United States government had released updated data revealing that tens of thousands of African immigrants are currently listed for deportation.
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The figures, current as of November 24, 2024, highlight the growing focus on immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, with nationals from Somalia, Mauritania, and Nigeria topping the list.
Source: Legit.ng
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