Matilda Omonaiye/
A federal jury in Puerto Rico has convicted a 37-year-old Nigerian, Oluwasegun Baiyewu, for his role in a sprawling money-laundering conspiracy linked to romance scams, pandemic unemployment fraud and business email compromise schemes that targeted elderly and vulnerable Americans.
Baiyewu became the fifth defendant convicted in the case following a 22-day trial in San Juan, according to the United States Department of Justice.
Evidence presented at trial showed that Baiyewu and four others allegedly operated within a network that received and laundered proceeds generated by international organised fraud schemes before moving the money through hundreds of transactions.
The other defendants were identified as Oluwaseun Adelekan, 40, and Temitope Omotayo, 40, both of Staten Island, New York; Ifeoluwa Dudubo, 37, of Austin, Texas; and Temitope Suleiman, 37, also of Richmond, Texas.
According to court documents, the conspiracy involved proceeds from romance fraud, pandemic-related unemployment insurance fraud and business email compromise scams, with many of the victims said to be elderly or otherwise vulnerable Americans.
The indictment alleged that between 2020 and 2021, members of the network worked together to “clean” money generated from scams targeting victims in California, Illinois, Washington and Nevada.
Businesses in Puerto Rico and Missouri were also allegedly hit through business email compromise schemes.
After receiving the proceeds, prosecutors said, members of the conspiracy carried out hundreds of financial transactions designed to move or disguise the illicit funds.
Part of the money was allegedly used to purchase used vehicles, which were subsequently shipped overseas to Nigeria.
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said Baiyewu’s conviction underscored Washington’s determination to pursue not only those who devise fraud schemes but also the financial facilitators who make the crimes profitable.
“This conviction is a message to the transnational organized crime groups and their accomplices who take advantage of our open financial system: you cannot victimize Americans with impunity,” Shumate said.
U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico said the prosecution demonstrated the resolve of American law enforcement agencies to pursue criminals who exploit vulnerable people and businesses for financial gain.
The FBI described money launderers and other facilitators as crucial components of the cybercrime ecosystem, saying dismantling such support networks was central to efforts against transnational organised crime.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service similarly said investigators would continue pursuing everyone involved in schemes targeting older Americans, irrespective of their role in the criminal network.
Baiyewu and the four other defendants are expected to be sentenced before U.S. District Judge Raúl M. Arias-Marxuach in Puerto Rico. The statement did not specify their sentencing dates.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the FBI San Juan Cyber Task Force, with assistance from agencies involved in the United States’ campaign against COVID-19-related fraud.
Trial Attorneys Emily C. Powers and Richard S. Greene IV of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney Linet Olinghouse for the District of Puerto Rico, prosecuted the case.
The Justice Department also urged Americans aged 60 and above who have suffered financial fraud to report their cases through the National Elder Fraud Hotline, stressing that early reporting could improve the chances of tracing perpetrators and recovering stolen funds.
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