Four Individuals Plead Guilty To Federal Charges Arising Out Of International Mail And Wire Fraud Scheme

The scheme operated for years in West Michigan and throughout the United States

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"><_w3a_listitem listvalue="Choose an item."><_w3a_listitem datavalue="GRAND RAPIDS" listvalue="GRAND RAPIDS"><_w3a_listitem datavalue="MARQUETTE" listvalue="MARQUETTE"> GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark A. Totten today announced that four individuals pleaded guilty to federal charges for participating in an international mail and wire fraud scheme originating in Nigeria and frequently targeting elderly individuals. Fatai Okunola, 37, of Kalamazoo, Michigan; Oluwaseyi Adeola, 34, of Dallas, Texas; and Cory McDougal, 33, of Romeoville, Illinois, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and Ijeoma Adeola, 36, also of Dallas, Texas, pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony (the failure to report the commission of a felony to appropriate authorities and taking an affirmative step to assist in the concealment of the crime) for her role in affirmatively concealing the operations of the conspiracy. Fatai Okunola additionally pleaded guilty to making false statements on his application for naturalization as a United States citizen and money laundering related to assisting other individuals in purchasing vehicles with money from the fraud scheme and exporting the vehicles to Nigeria.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> "Securing these guilty pleas is a step forward to ensuring justice for the victims of this international fraud scheme," said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. "The defendants used modern technology, including the internet and social media platforms - something we all rely upon every day to communicate and carry out legitimate tasks in our daily lives - to prey on elderly and vulnerable victims. Some of the victims in this case lost their retirement savings, took loans against their homes, or suffered other financial distress because of the defendants' alleged lies. My office will vigorously pursue sentences that appropriately reflect the seriousness of this financial fraud and the damage they have done to the public's confidence in the information we all receive over the internet every day."

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> According to court records, the defendants conspired with individuals primarily in Nigeria to defraud individuals in the United States, many that were elderly or particularly vulnerable, through a variety of fraud schemes using interstate wire transmissions or the mail system. The conspirators in Nigeria created false online personas to develop relationships with their victims over the internet, through social media, by text messages or by telephone. These relationships centered around romantic interests, offers to buy or sell goods or services, apartment rentals, or offers to make loans or provide grant funding, among other schemes. The conspirators sent pictures or provided other information to the victims to make their schemes appear genuine. When the conspirators used telephone calls, they used voice-over-internet-protocol numbers to make it appear as if the calls were originating within the United States near the victims. After developing the relationships, the conspirators asked for money for a variety of reasons related to the scheme.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> After the victims agreed, the conspirators directed the victims to send the money to the defendants, who opened numerous bank accounts to receive the victims' money. On some occasions, the defendants received the victims' money in post office boxes maintained under alias names or through payments made payable to "shell" businesses that the defendants, including Ijeoma Adeola, created to receive fraud proceeds. The victims sent the money to the defendants through the mail, bank-to-bank transfers, or through peer-to-peer money transfer services like Zelle or PayPal. After the defendants received the money in their accounts, they transferred the money to each other, to the conspirators overseas, and to their own accounts in Nigeria. Fatai Okunola used some of the fraud proceeds he received to assist others in purchasing automobiles in the United States and then exporting them to Nigeria. According to the indictment, defendants received more than $2 million dollars in their accounts from the scheme between 2017 and 2022.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> All defendants will be sentenced on January 14, 2025. Fatai Okunola, Oluwaseyi Adeola, and Cory McDougal each face a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison for their roles in the conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and will be ordered to pay restitution to their victims. Okunola additionally faces a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison for his money laundering conviction, up to 5 years in prison for his conviction related to making false statements on his naturalization application, and possible removal and deportation from the United States. Ijeoma Adeola faces a maximum sentence of up to 3 years in prison and will be ordered to pay restitution to her victims.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> "HSI continues to ensure that fraudsters are held accountable for their crimes and today's guilty plea is evidence of that," said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey. "By working together at all levels of law enforcement, we can dismantle interstate and international fraud networks that prey on hard-working people across the country."

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> "The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is charged with safeguarding the nation's mail system, and those who use it, from fraud and exploitation - a charge we take very seriously," said USPIS Inspector in Charge Rodney Hopkins. "Particularly when it comes to our most vulnerable populations, we work tirelessly alongside our partners to prosecute such financial predators to the fullest extent of the law. I would like to thank HSI and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan for their partnership and the great work on this case leading to today's guilty pleas."

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Individuals who believe they may be a victim of this fraud and who have not yet communicated with the U.S. Attorney's Office are encouraged to visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmi/victim-and-witness-assistance-program/vw-large-cases/okunola or contact Breane Warner, Victim Assistance Specialist, at (616) 808-2064. A list of post office boxes, email addresses, and fraudulent names used in this case are posted on the website.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Anyone who suspects an ongoing internet crime is encouraged to file a report with the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3.gov), the FBI's central hub for reporting cybercrime. Those reports often provide invaluable information to help the FBI and its law enforcement partners investigate and prosecute fraud schemes like the one charged in this case.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> Federal law enforcement provides a number of tips on how to protect yourself from similar internet or email scams, including:

• Be cautious of unsolicited phone calls, e-mails, and mailings.
• Never give or send any sensitive information (including your date of birth, account numbers, or passwords), credit or debit card numbers, or money to unverified people or businesses.
• Resist the pressure to act quickly. Scammers create a false sense of urgency to lure people to immediate action.
• If you recognize a scam attempt, immediately end all communication with the perpetrator.

<_w3a_sdt docpart="D8C71BAEDFE54CD5929C1FF49A2666FE" dropdown="t" id="-1351956640" sdttag="City" title="City"> The Homeland Security Investigations, and United States Postal Inspection Service, Grand Rapids offices, are investigating this case. The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety also provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ron Stella is prosecuting the case.

###