Romance Scam: Two Nigerians in US Face 40-Year Prison Sentence

Due to their roles in a romance scam, Olutayo Sunday Ogunlaja and Abel Adeyi Daramola, two Nigerians living in the United States, will be sentenced to a total of 40 years in prison.

The two were found guilty during a four-day trial and less than three hours of deliberation, according to a statement released by the Department of Justice on behalf of US Attorney Alexander Uballez and FBI Albuquerque Field Office Special Agent in Charge Raul Bujanda.

“The scheme, which started in January 2016, involved the creation of a fictitious persona named Glenn Brown on the dating website eHarmony.com,” according to court documents and evidence produced at trial. Nigerian nationals Olutayo Sunday Ogunlaja, 39, and Abel Adeyi Daramola, 37, collaborated with another person who used this fictitious profile to start a romantic relationship with a victim in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and then demand money from them, according to a portion of the statement.

According to the statement, the victim was misled throughout the scam into thinking that “Glenn Brown” needed their money in order to finish a fictitious construction job in Malaysia and make a safe return to the United States.

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It was discovered that between January 2016 and April 2017, the victim transferred over $560,000 to several accounts in the US, Canada, and Malaysia.

In a similar vein, the victim allegedly sent about $28,000 to a Woodforest Bank account under the name Daramola Cars on September 27, 2016, per the bogus “Glenn Brown” persona’s instructions.

Daramola then sent a check for $14,000 and wired $18,000 to a Danish seafood merchant.

Although Daramola denied knowing about the romance scam, the FBI claimed that their investigation had turned up a wealth of evidence, including WhatsApp and text messages on Daramola’s phone, demonstrating his involvement in providing bank accounts for a number of fraud schemes, including romance scams.

Ogunlaja, the second prisoner, was involved in the illicit receipt of monies through his Bank of America account.

The FBI claims that “Glenn Brown” gave the victim instructions to deposit $20,000 into Ogunlaja’s account on March 9 and March 15, 2016.

It was discovered that Ogunlaja made numerous cash withdrawals and transfers to Daramola’s account following the contributions.

Ogunlaja and Daramola were placed on terms of release by the court after the verdict, pending the date of sentencing, which has not yet been set.

Ogunlaja and Daramola each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison without the possibility of release.