Homeland Security Task Force Investigation Leads To Nigerian National Charged with Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud

SCRANTON- The United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Okeoghene Patrick Udugba, age 45, of Frisco, Texas, was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud.

According to United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, the indictment alleges that Udugba and others orchestrated overlapping romance and business email compromise schemes. As part of the scheme, Udugba and others utilized social media and dating websites to meet and establish purported romantic relationships with persons in multiple states. Those persons were groomed and ultimately used by Udugba and others as money mules to receive and cash fraudulently obtained checks.

To obtain the checks, members of the conspiracy sent emails from "spoofed" addresses in Nigeria, claiming to be representatives of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). The spoofed emails directed that FWS grant funds be used to pay fabricated invoices, which falsely represented that the money mules were contractors and consultants of FWS who had performed work on grant-eligible projects. As a result of the fraudulent emails and invoices, FWS's grant administrator issued payments in excess of $300,000.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and Department of Interior Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Sarah R. Lloyd is prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF comprises agents and officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Department of Interior (DOI) Office of Inspector General (OIG) with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division ("Fraud Division"). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department's work to combat fraud supports President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following the finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

# # #