A U.S. court has sentenced Lagos-based internet fraudster, Daniel Chima Inweregbu, to prison for his involvement in wire fraud and a romance scam scheme.
In a statement released on Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that the 40-year-old was handed 33 months in federal prison by District Judge Nanette Jolivette Brown. His sentence also includes three years of supervised release, a $100 special assessment, and restitution amounting to $166,400.
Inweregbu, who was extradited from the United Kingdom to the United States, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, use of an assumed identity, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to prosecutors, he targeted four American women, deceiving them into online romantic relationships and ultimately defrauding them. The scam resulted in actual and intended losses exceeding $405,000.
Court documents showed that between July 1, 2017, and December 16, 2018, Inweregbu and his partners operated a sophisticated romance scam aimed at obtaining money and valuables from women born between 1965 and 1976.
Using the false identity “Larry Pham,” presented as a Canadian-born Vietnamese man, the fraudsters contacted their victims via social media, messaging apps, and email, exploiting their emotional vulnerability.
After gaining their trust, the victims were persuaded to send money under various fabricated stories. The proceeds were funneled through U.S.-based bank accounts before being laundered through a network of intermediaries to conceal the source and ownership of the funds.
