Three Nigerian individuals have been handed prison sentences totaling more than 21 years in the United States after pleading guilty to orchestrating a massive inheritance scam that targeted the elderly and vulnerable. The defendants, identified as Jonathan Iheanyichukwu Abraham, Emmanuel Samuel, and Jerry Chucks Ozor, carried out the fraud from their base in London, preying on victims across the United States and causing substantial financial losses running into millions of dollars.
The trio’s sentencing took place at a court in Miami, Florida, where they were found guilty of engaging in inheritance scams that exploited unsuspecting victims. The defendants were convicted of convincing victims, primarily elderly Americans, that they were eligible to inherit substantial sums of money from long-lost relatives who had supposedly passed away. However, before these fictitious inheritances could be released, the victims were coerced into paying various charges, fees, and taxes, ultimately leading to substantial financial losses.
Jonathan Abraham, aged 44, residing at Cumberland Place in Hither Green, received a prison sentence of seven years and six months. Emmanuel Samuel, also 44, residing on Longhurst Road in Croydon, was sentenced to six years and 10 months behind bars. Jerry Chuks Ozor, aged 43, living at Wadhurst Court in Penge, was handed a prison term of seven years and three months.
The defendants were apprehended in south London by officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) in April 2022 and subsequently extradited to the United States this year. The NCA’s Complex Financial Crime Team collaborated with US authorities, including the Department of Justice and the US Postal Inspection Service, along with European partners, to coordinate the international efforts that led to the arrest and prosecution of the suspects.
The elaborate scam involved the perpetrators sending personalized letters to their targets, falsely representing themselves as representatives of a Spanish bank. The letters informed recipients that they were entitled to a multimillion-dollar inheritance left by a deceased family member in Spain. In order to access their purported inheritance, victims were instructed to send money to cover delivery fees, taxes, and other payments. The defendants further complicated the scheme by using a network of US-based former victims as intermediaries to funnel money. Regrettably, those who fell victim to the scam never received the promised inheritance funds.
Gary Cathcart, Head of Financial Investigation at the NCA, highlighted the transnational nature of the fraud and stressed the importance of international cooperation in combatting such criminal activities. The collaboration between law enforcement agencies from different countries proved instrumental in disrupting the fraud operation and safeguarding the public from financial harm.
The successful prosecution of these individuals sends a strong message to those engaging in cross-border financial crimes. The NCA’s joint efforts with US and European counterparts underscore the power of international cooperation in tackling intricate scams that victimize the innocent and vulnerable.
