A Nigerian man identified as Leslie Chinedu Mba, has been sentenced to 228 months in prison by a United States district court over involvement in a romance scam and business email compromise scheme.
David Hittner, the judge, issued the sentence after Mba, 40, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to render false statements in immigration documents.
In a statement by the US department of justice, Mba and others were said to have “carried out business email compromise and romance scams targeting unsuspecting victims” from April 2018 to December 2023.
US prosecutors said the fraud schemes started outside the US and that the co-conspirators gained unauthorised access to business email accounts and redirected payments to fraudulent bank accounts.
The prosecutors said the victims believed that they were sending money to legitimate businesses, but Mba and his co-conspirators funneled the funds to accounts they controlled.
“Mba and others acted as money mules, opening or using existing bank accounts to collect and move proceeds from the fraud,” the US justice department said.
“Additionally, Mba tried to obtain U.S. permanent residency through multiple fraudulent marriages after his initial application was denied and he was ordered to be removed from the country.”
The US justice department said the scheme resulted in a total loss of $4 million.
Mba is expected to face removal proceedings following his imprisonment.
Four Houston residents had previously pleaded guilty in connection with the case. Grace Morisho, Rodgers Kadikilo, and Kristin Smith received sentences ranging from 15 to 25 months, while Alexandra Golovko received five years probation.
