Two Nigerians: Joseph Iorhemba Asan Jr. and Charles Ifeanyi Ogozy, have been indicted in a $3 million fraud.
The two Nigerians, who are also citizens of the United States of America, are United States Army Reservists.
The largely unreported crime in Nigeria was committed by Asan and Ogozy over a couple of years, with the duo pleading guilty on December 23, 2020.
Asan was sentenced to 46 months imprisonment on September 8, 2021.
In the case of Ogozy, his sentencing, initially scheduled for January 12, 2022, was adjourned to March 2, 2022 at 11:30am as an in-person sentencing.
The Defendant’s submission was due by February 16, 2022, while that of the Government was scheduled for February 23, 2022.
Available online report showed that justice came for Ogozy, who was 31 when he was arrested, in October 2022.
He is to spend 29 months behind bars and three years of supervised release.
Audrey Strauss, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced Asan’s sentencing to 46 months in connection with a scheme to commit romance fraud scams and business email compromises against dozens of victims across the United States, defraud banks, and launder millions of dollars in fraud proceeds to co-conspirators based in Nigeria.
He was arrested on October 31, 2019 and pled guilty on December 23, 2020 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud.
He sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said: “Among the many victims of the internet scams facilitated by Joseph Asan Jr. were elderly women and men who were callously fooled into believing they were engaging online with potential romantic interests.
“This former serviceman and his co-defendant even laundered money stolen from a U.S. Marine Corps veteran’s organization in one of the conspiracy’s email spoofing schemes.
“Asan’s crimes have indeed led to his own reversal of his fortune, as this former defender of this country now becomes a federal prisoner.”
According to allegations in documents filed in Manhattan federal court: From at least in or about February 2018 through at least in or about October 2019, ASAN and his co-defendant CHARLES IFEANYI OGOZY were members of the U.S. Army Reserves who participated in a scheme to commit fraud against dozens of victims across the United States, defraud banks, and launder millions of dollars in fraud proceeds in bank accounts that they controlled. The funds laundered by ASAN and OGOZY were obtained primarily through: (a) romance scams, in which members of the scheme deluded unsuspecting older women and men into believing they were in a romantic relationship with a fake identity assumed by members of the scheme, and used false pretenses to cause the victims to transfer money to bank accounts under the control of members of the scheme, including ASAN and OGOZY; and (b) business email compromises, in which members of the scheme gained unauthorized access to or spoofed email accounts and impersonated employees of a company or third parties engaged in business with the company in order to fraudulently induce the victims to transfer money to bank accounts under the control of members of the scheme, including ASAN and OGOZY.
Notably, one of the victims of the defendants’ business email compromise scheme included a U.S. Marine Corps veteran’s organization.
In order to launder proceeds from those fraud schemes, ASAN and OGOZY opened several bank accounts in the names of fake businesses called Uxbridge Capital LLC, Renegade Logistics LLC, and Eldadoc Consulting LLC.
In total, Asan opened at least 10 business bank accounts at eight different banks in the names of these fake businesses, and he used those accounts to receive and transfer to co-conspirators overseas over $1.8 million in fraud proceeds from at least 69 identified victims.
In connection with the opening of the business bank accounts, Asan made multiple false statements to banks about the purported business of his companies, including misrepresentations that the companies were involved in shipping, real estate, and public relations.
In addition, a significant portion of the laundered funds was deposited and withdrawn in cash that was not able to be traced by law enforcement.
Asan, 24 at time of arrest, of Daytona Beach, Florida, was also sentenced to three years of supervised release.
In addition, Asan was ordered to forfeit $184,723, and to pay restitution of $1,792,015 to victims.
Strauss praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.
Strauss also thanked the U.S. Customs and Border Protection for their assistance in the investigation.
Before their sentencing, Ogozy pled guilty on December 22, 2020 before U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley III.
ASAN pled guilty on December 23, 2022 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Moses and his case was assigned to U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood.
Strauss said: “U.S. Army reservists Joseph Asan and Charles Ogozy admitted today to their roles in an internet fraud scheme to bilk victims across the country of over $3 million. The defendants and their co-conspirators callously victimized older men and women and even a Marine Corps veterans association in their business email compromises and online romance scams. I thank the FBI and U.S. Army CID for their assistance in holding these reservists accountable for their dishonorable conduct.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “Using false identities, email compromises, and fake schemes to scam others out of money are clear federal crimes. But the fact that Mr. Asan, Jr. and Mr. Ogozy, who themselves voluntarily wear our Nation’s uniform and swore an oath to uphold our Constitution, also targeted a veteran’s organization adds insult to the injury endured by some of the victims. Because they chose to break the law, these two Army reservists will now be rolling along to federal prison.”
Director of the Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit, Frank Robey, said: “To think that two Reserve Soldiers would perpetrate such brazen acts of fraud is beyond belief. However, for these two, greed was more important than being faithful to the trust put in them by our government, and it was their undoing. They will be held fully responsible for the acts of fraud they committed.”
According to allegations in the Complaint, the charging instruments, and other publically filed documents:
From at least in or about February 2018 through at least in or about September 2019, ASAN and OGOZY were members of the U.S. Army Reserves who participated in a scheme to commit fraud against victims across the United States, defraud banks, and launder over $3 million in fraud proceeds in bank accounts that they controlled.
The funds laundered by ASAN and OGOZY were obtained primarily through (a) business email compromises, in which members of the scheme gained unauthorized access to or spoofed email accounts and impersonated employees of a company or third parties engaged in business with the company in order to fraudulently induce the victims to transfer money to bank accounts under the control of members of the scheme; and (b) romance scams, in which members of the scheme deluded unsuspecting older women and men into believing they were in a romantic relationship with a fake identity assumed by members of the scheme and used false pretenses to cause the victims to transfer money to bank accounts under the control of members of the scheme, including ASAN and OGOZY.
Notably, one of the victims of the defendants’ scheme included a U.S. Marine Corps veteran’s organization.
In order to launder over $3 million in proceeds from those fraud schemes, ASAN and OGOZY opened several bank accounts in the names of fake businesses called Uxbridge Capital LLC, Renegade Logistics LLC, and Eldadoc Consulting LLC and received fraud proceeds in those bank accounts.
ASAN and OGOZY then laundered the fraud proceeds to each other and to other co-conspirators based in Nigeria. In connection with the opening of the business bank accounts, the defendants made multiple false statements to banks about the purported legitimate business of their companies, including misrepresentations that they were involved in shipping, real estate, and public relations.
In addition, a significant portion of the funds laundered by the defendants was deposited and withdrawn in cash that was not able to be traced by law enforcement.