A Nigerian national based in the United States, Ayobami Omoniyi, has been sentenced to two years and six months in prison over his role in a multimillion-dollar wire fraud scheme.
The 26-year-old, who held a U.S. Green Card, was convicted for laundering proceeds of fraud through an unlicensed money transmitting operation, according to a statement by the U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday.
Court records show that Omoniyi pleaded guilty to the charges on August 19, 2024. He was subsequently sentenced to 32 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen.
In addition to the custodial sentence, the court ordered him to pay restitution of $202,273.80 to victims. He is also expected to be deported from the United States after completing his prison term.
Prosecutors told the court that Omoniyi had been involved in fraudulent activities since arriving in the U.S. and acted as a recruiter within the network.
Investigations revealed that in 2021, he and his accomplices operated an unlicensed money transmitting business used to receive and transfer funds obtained through business email compromise scams. One of the victims identified in the case was a fishing company based in Australia.
Authorities said the scheme involved sending spoofed emails designed to appear as legitimate business communications, thereby deceiving victims into transferring funds into accounts controlled by the fraud syndicate.
As part of his plea agreement, Omoniyi admitted to moving illicit funds through multiple bank accounts and facilitating the transfer of proceeds to other members of the network in exchange for a commission.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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