2021-07-09 DOJ SDNY press_release 116 KB 3,610 chars

Army Reservist Sentenced To 40 Months In Prison For Participating In Money Laundering Scheme

Caption: United States v. Audrey Strauss, et al.

summary

U.S. Army Reservist Emeka Nnawuba was sentenced to 40 months in prison for conspiring to launder over $1 million in proceeds from romance scams and business email compromise schemes, using false identities to open bank accounts and transfer funds, and was ordered to forfeit over $2.09 million and pay $1.36 million in restitution.

paragraph

Emeka Nnawuba, a U.S. Army Reservist, pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering for his role in a scheme that laundered over $1 million in proceeds from romance scams and business email compromise schemes targeting dozens of victims. He used false identities and forged passports to open bank accounts, received more than $2 million in fraud proceeds, withdrew tens of thousands in cash, and transferred funds to conceal their origin. In addition to a 40-month prison term, he was sentenced to three years of supervised release, ordered to forfeit $2,096,248.39, and pay $1,362,528.46 in restitution.

narrative

Emeka Nnawuba, a 31-year-old U.S. Army Reservist from Fayetteville, Arkansas, was sentenced to 40 months in prison for conspiring to launder the proceeds of romance scams and business email compromise schemes that targeted dozens of victims between 2016 and 2018. Using false identities and fraudulent passports, he opened multiple bank accounts, received over $2 million in illicit funds, withdrew tens of thousands in cash, and transferred more than $1 million to co-conspirators to obscure the money’s origin. The fraud schemes involved deceiving unsuspecting women through dating websites and impersonating professionals or businesses to trick victims into transferring money. Nnawuba pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering before Judge Katherine Polk Failla in the Southern District of New York. In addition to his prison term, he was ordered to serve three years of supervised release, forfeit $2,096,248.39, and pay $1,362,528.46 in restitution to victims. The investigation was led by the U.S. Secret Service with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Juliana N. Murray and Robert B. Sobelman.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: affinity-fraud (80%)
Court: Southern District of New York
Outcome: pleaded
Restitution: $1,362,528
Victim loss: $2,000,000

Classified affinity-fraud(confidence 80%). EDGAR detection: forms Form D· recall 58% / precision 2%. detection rule →

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 4

$2.10M $2,096,248 $1M–$10M
$2.00M $2 million $1M–$10M
$1.36M $1,362,528 $1M–$10M
$1.00M $1 million $1M–$10M

Entities 6

person audrey strauss
scheme_term conspiracy to commit money laundering
person emeka nnawuba
person judge katherine polk failla
scheme_term money laundering scheme
person scheme members

Triples 15

Emeka Nnawuba sentenced to 40 months in prison
Emeka Nnawuba participated in money laundering scheme
Emeka Nnawuba laundered over $1 million in fraud proceeds
Emeka Nnawuba is member of United States Army Reserves
Emeka Nnawuba pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering
Emeka Nnawuba ordered to forfeit $2,096,248.39
Emeka Nnawuba ordered to pay $1,362,528.46 in restitution
Emeka Nnawuba sentenced to three years of supervised release
Scheme members perpetrated romance fraud and business email compromise schemes
Emeka Nnawuba received or attempted to receive more than $2 million in fraud proceeds
Emeka Nnawuba transferred more than $1 million of fraud proceeds to co-conspirators
Judge Katherine Polk Failla imposed 40 months prison sentence
Audrey Strauss announced sentencing of Emeka Nnawuba
Emeka Nnawuba used false identities and false passports to open bank accounts
Scheme operated from at least 2016 until 2018

View original DOJ press releasejustice.gov

Extracted body text (3,610c)

Press Release Army Reservist Sentenced To 40 Months In Prison For Participating In Money Laundering Scheme Friday, July 9, 2021 Share FacebookLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. XLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. LinkedInLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the “external link” icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. Email For Immediate Release U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that EMEKA NNAWUBA, a/k/a “Benjamin Alabie,” who is a member of the United States Army Reserves, was sentenced yesterday to 40 months in prison for participating in a scheme to launder over $1 million in proceeds of romance fraud and business email compromise schemes perpetrated against dozens of victims. NNAWUBA previously pled guilty before United States District Judge Katherine Polk Failla, who also imposed yesterday’s sentence. U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “Emeka Nnawuba laundered money for a scheme that trolled dating websites in order to steal money from the accounts of unsuspecting women. He will now spend time in prison and be compelled to make restitution to the victims of the scheme.” According to the allegations in the Superseding Indictment, court documents, and statements made in court: From at least 2016 until 2018, NNAWUBA participated in a scheme to launder the proceeds of frauds perpetrated against dozens of victims. Among other things, NNAWUBA used false identities and false passports to open bank accounts, received or attempted to receive more than $2 million in fraud proceeds, withdrew tens of thousands of dollars of fraud proceeds in cash, and transferred more than $1 million of fraud proceeds to bank accounts controlled by co-conspirators in an effort to conceal the source of funds. The funds laundered by NNAWUBA were procured principally by (a) romance scams, in which members of the scheme trolled dating websites to find unsuspecting women and stole their money on false pretenses, and (b) business compromise scams, in which members of the scheme impersonated individuals, professionals, or businesses in the course of otherwise ordinary financial transactions, and then fraudulently induced the counterparties to those transactions to transfer funds to bank accounts controlled and operated by NNAWUBA or other members of the scheme. * * * NNAWUBA, 31, of Fayetteville, Arkansas, pled guilty to and was sentenced on one count of participating in a conspiracy to commit money laundering. In addition to the prison term, NNAWUBA was sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to forfeit $2,096,248.39 and pay $1,362,528.46 in restitution. Ms. Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of the U.S. Secret Service, and thanked Homeland Security Investigations for its assistance. The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Juliana N. Murray and Robert B. Sobelman are in charge of the prosecution. Contact James Margolin, Nicholas Biase (212) 637-2600 Updated July 9, 2021 Topic Financial Fraud Component USAO - New York, Southern Press Release Number: 21-168

OCR text (3,610c · plain-text · 99% conf)