United States v. Oladimeji Seun Ayelotan

Case Number: 17-60397

State: Mississippi

• Violations : - Conspiracy to commit mail fraud Wire fraud - Bank fraud - Conspiracy to commit identity theft Access device fraud - Theft of U.S. government funds - Three counts of mail fraud - Conspiracy to commit money laundering

• Case Information :Oladimeji Seun Ayelotan, 30, was extradited from South Africa to the United States in July 2015 and sentenced to 95 years in prison. Ayelotan was involved in “romance scams” at least since 2001. Ayelotan, along with his partners, would use dating sites such as “seniorpeoplemeet.com” and fake identities to find victims, gain their trust, and eventually get them to send them money. They would steal information such as Social Security numbers, credit card numbers, names, and bank accounts. With the information of their victims, they would be able to launder money via Western Union and MoneyGram to be able to cash counterfeit checks. In total, the group was able to pull over $3 billion in online rackets over three years and tens of millions of dollars in intended losses.

• Defendant's Statement :

1. Reject their leadership enhancement and should have gotten a minor-role reduction.

2. The district court’s decision to remove Juror 20 violated their due process rights.

3. Eighth Amendment: Effective life sentences for nonviolent crimes are cruel and unusual punishment.

4. Challenged the intended loss calculation of over $25 million.

• Jury Verdict : A jury found the three cybercriminals guilty of mail fraud, wire fraud, identity theft, credit card fraud, and theft of government property.

Sources :

1. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/three-nigerians-sentenced-international-cyber-financial-fr aud-scheme

2. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdms/pr/three-nigerian-nationals-south-africa-convicted-int ernational-cyber-financial-fraud

3. https://www.theregister.com/2017/05/25/nigerians_sentenced_to_prison_online_scammin g/

4. https://www.govinfo.gov/