…Faces 40 Years in Prison
A federal jury in Wilmington, North Carolina, has convicted a 34-year-old Nigerian man, Saheed Sunday Owolabi, for his role in a series of romance scams and pandemic-era financial fraud schemes that targeted hundreds of victims across the United States.
Owolabi was found guilty on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, following a detailed investigation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The verdict was delivered after prosecutors presented evidence linking him to a network of cybercriminals who used fake online identities to deceive victims and siphon large sums of money.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Owolabi operated from Nigeria, where he posed as a woman online to lure unsuspecting American men into fabricated romantic relationships. Once emotionally invested, victims were manipulated into sending money or sharing sensitive banking information.
Prosecutors further disclosed that the bank accounts obtained through these romance scams were later repurposed to channel proceeds from other fraudulent schemes. One notable incident occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic when a pending real-estate transaction was intercepted by the syndicate. Fraudsters sent spoofed emails to a homebuyer, redirecting over $120,000 into an account controlled by the criminal ring.
Court documents also revealed messages in which Owolabi openly admitted to running a romance scam—only to later discover that he himself had been communicating with another scammer impersonating a victim. The individual mocked him, telling him to “learn how to do a clean job,” prosecutors said.
U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle described the case as part of an intensified federal crackdown on cybercrime networks that “drain millions from hardworking people.” He noted that hundreds of individuals were affected by the broader operations connected to Owolabi.
Owolabi faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. His sentencing is scheduled for January 2026.
The case, filed under Case No. 5:22-CR-137-M, remains accessible through the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina and the PACER system.
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