- Two Nigerians were convicted in the U.S. for a $560,000 romance scam.
- They face up to 20 years each in federal prison.
- The scam involved a fake dating profile and fraudulent bank transactions.
Two Nigerian nationals, Olutayo Sunday Ogunlaja and Abel Adeyi Daramola, face up to 20 years each in a U.S. federal prison after being convicted of an elaborate $560,000 romance scam.
The scheme began in January 2016 when a fictitious profile, “Glenn Brown,” was created on the dating site eHarmony.com.
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Ogunlaja and Daramola collaborated with another individual who used the fake profile to deceive a victim in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Pretending to be romantically involved, the scammer convinced the victim to fund a fake construction project in Malaysia, claiming it was necessary for “Glenn Brown” to return to the U.S.
Between January 2016 and April 2017, the victim transferred approximately $560,000 to accounts in the U.S., Canada, and Malaysia.
Key transactions included a $28,000 wire transfer to a Woodforest Bank account under “Daramola Cars,” from which Daramola funneled $18,000 to a seafood importer in Denmark and issued a $14,000 check.
Despite Daramola’s denial of involvement, FBI investigators found incriminating text and WhatsApp messages on his phone, linking him to multiple fraud schemes.
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Ogunlaja’s role involved receiving fraudulent funds into his Bank of America account and making withdrawals and transfers to Daramola.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office and FBI officials announced the verdict on January 7, 2025. The defendants remain on conditional release pending sentencing, with each facing up to 20 years in federal prison without parole.
