A 33-year-old Nigerian, Olugbenga Lawal, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, has been sentenced to 10 years and one month in prison, News About Nigeria reports.
The verdict, delivered on Monday, also includes an order for Lawal to pay over $1.46 million in restitution.
The sentence is a result of his involvement in conspiring to launder money derived from internet fraud schemes.
The U.S. Department of Justice issued a statement saying that court documents and trial evidence revealed Lawal’s direct collaboration with the Nigeria-based leader of an international criminal organisation.
This group specialised in defrauding people and businesses across the United States through various internet-based scams, including romance fraud and business email compromise schemes.
The criminal organisation, known for frequently targeting elderly victims who believed they had developed romantic relationships online, amassed millions of dollars through these fraudulent activities.
Lawal’s role in the operation involved laundering the proceeds of these schemes, converting and repatriating the funds.
Between January 2019 and June 2020, bank accounts controlled by Lawal and his co-conspirators received millions of dollars linked directly to victims of the internet fraud schemes.
Lawal’s accounts, associated with his business entity Luxe Logistics LLC, received over $3.6 million in deposits during this period.
Notably, he managed accounts at multiple financial institutions to facilitate the laundering process.
Lawal was also involved in converting the fraudulently obtained funds into Nigerian currency by engaging in import/export transactions, such as shipping cars to Nigeria and conducting currency exchange business transactions.
These activities aimed to repatriate the criminal organisation’s proceeds back to Nigeria.
Following a federal jury conviction on August 10, 2023, for conspiring to commit money laundering, Lawal’s sentencing now includes a 10-year prison term and a restitution order.
Three of his co-conspirators had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering—Michael Hermann, Rita Assane, and Dwight Baines.
