A Nigerian lady has pleaded guilty in a federal court in Missouri, United States for her role in fraud schemes that defrauded victims across the United States.
Oyindamola Akinrinola, 23, a college student of Lawrence, Kansas arraigned for receiving and transferring illicit funds on commission on behalf of a Nigerian co-conspirator.
“Akinrinola and her co-conspirator in Nigeria victimised individuals, several elderly, through a variety of online scams,” said US Attorney Stephen McAllister.
“She now faces time in federal prison for her crimes. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prioritise the investigation and prosecution of fraud schemes like these, no matter where they originate. I also take this conviction as an opportunity to reiterate to all Kansans the vulnerability of our senior citizens to scams and con artists, who prey upon them. We must all be vigilant to protect our parents, grandparents, elderly relatives, friends and neighbours from such frauds and fraudsters.”
Akinrinola was granted legal permanent residency in the United States in 2018. Her co-conspirator in Nigeria “orchestrated several scams, such as tricking victims into believing they were eligible for fictitious awards or establishing purported (but false) romantic relationships with victims and exploiting their affections,” McAllister said.
The unnamed Nigerian co-conspirator directed victims to send money to Akinrinola, court documents say.
While in Kansas as a college student, she received funds from the scam victims—in amounts ranging from hundreds of dollars to as much as $20,000—via wire transfers, money orders, financial applications, Walmart money grams, Western Union, the United States Postal Service, and various other means.
Akinrinola kept a portion for herself as her reward and sent the bulk of the funds to her co-conspirator in Nigeria through Sendwave, WorldRemit, or Boss Revolution mobile applications.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 15, 2021, at 9:00 am.
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