Ronayerin Ogolor, a 51-year-old Nigerian man, has been given a three-year prison sentence for engaging in internet fraud in the United States.
Ogolor, who became a naturalized citizen of the US, defrauded hundreds of thousands of dollars from 13 victims in the US and Italy.
In October 2019, Ogolor admitted guilt to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with an online love scam that targeted singles, including some elderly individuals, seeking love on dating sites.
On Thursday, June 18, he was sentenced by US Chief District Judge Beth Phillips and was mandated to pay $871,739 in restitution to his 13 victims.
Ogolor and his associates established multiple online dating profiles and reached out to Western women, fostering a sense of affection and often romance with them, according to a statement from the US Department of Justice.
After establishing relationships and ‘love’ with their victims, they solicited money for various reasons such as hospital fees, travel expenses, ‘customs expenses’, ‘golf import taxes’, or investment opportunities. Subsequently, after the victims made payments, they would request additional funds, claiming that more money was needed to ‘release the package’ or ‘pay customs expenses’ on money or gold.
As per the US Department of Justice’s statement, some women even sold their personal property, including homes and cars, to raise money for Ogolor and his partners.
According to prosecutors, Ogolor and his collaborators fraudulently acquired checks from businesses with the assistance of their unsuspecting victims, and opened multiple bank accounts in his name and in the names of sham businesses, where victims deposited their money.