Dare Babalola
A Nigerian national, Samuel Ugberaese, has been extradited to the United States to face prosecution over his alleged involvement in an international romance fraud and money laundering scheme targeting elderly victims.
The United States Department of Justice disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
According to the statement, Ugberaese was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after he was extradited from Nigeria to the United States.
He is expected to stand trial on charges linked to cross-border romance scams allegedly carried out against victims in the U.S. and other countries.
The indictment against him was returned by a federal grand jury in January 2021, while U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian S. Myers ordered that he remain in custody pending trial.
Prosecutors alleged that Ugberaese and his associates used deceptive romance schemes, fabricated stories and false promises to manipulate victims into sending money.
The indictment further accused him of working with a co-defendant, Oluwadamilare Kolaogunbule, a naturalised U.S. citizen, to move funds through a network of bank accounts, including accounts linked to purported export businesses, in an attempt to conceal the origin and ownership of the proceeds.
Ugberaese is facing one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and another count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted, he could face up to 40 years imprisonment.
The U.S. Department of Justice said several agencies and institutions assisted in securing his arrest and extradition.
They include the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the FBI Legal Attaché Office in Abuja, the U.S. Department of State, Nigeria’s Ministry of Justice and Office of the Attorney General, the Nigeria Police Force through INTERPOL, and the South African Police Service.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam F. Hulbig of the Fraud Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
The Department of Justice, however, noted that the indictment remains an allegation and that the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
