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Crypto scammer sentenced to 8 years in prison for fraud scheme

 10 months ago
source link: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/19/crypto-scammer-sentenced-to-8-years-in-prison-for-fraud-scheme.html
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Crypto World

UAE crypto scammer sentenced to 8 years in prison for multimillion-dollar fraud scheme

Published Wed, Jul 19 20238:28 AM EDTUpdated Wed, Jul 19 20232:58 PM EDT
Key Points
  • Olalekan Jacob Ponle, a Nigerian cyber scammer who lived a profligate lifestyle on social media, was sentenced to eight years in federal prison for scamming businesses across the U.S.
  • Ponle will pay $8 million in restitution, having already surrendered 151 bitcoins to the U.S. government.
  • Ponle’s rendition from the UAE came in July 2020, despite the lack of any formal extradition treaty between the U.S. and the UAE.
Residential skyscraper buildings beyond luxury villas on the waterfront of the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2023. Atlantis The Royal is opening as Dubai cashes in on an influx of newcomers to the city including Russians looking to protect their wealth, Israeli investors, crypto millionaires, and hedge fund executives after the city eased social restrictions and liberalized laws to consolidate its position as the regions pre-eminent business center.
Residential skyscraper buildings beyond luxury villas on the waterfront of the Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Jan. 19, 2023.
Christopher Pike | Bloomberg | Getty Images

A United Arab Emirates resident and Nigerian citizen was sentenced to eight years in federal prison for orchestrating a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme that victimized businesses across the U.S., Illinois federal prosecutors said.

Olalekan Jacob Ponle was extradited from the UAE into the custody of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in July 2020, where he remained until pleading guilty to a single wire fraud count earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a Tuesday press release.

Ponle worked with a network of scammers to masquerade as corporate entities using phishing emails. The scammers duped employees into sending money on behalf of their “employers,” who were really scammers.

Ponle, better known as Woodberry, was a minor celebrity in his home country of Nigeria due to his profligate displays of wealth on social media.

He relied on a network of “mules” to receive the funds and convert them into bitcoins he received. The Nigerian citizen used the proceeds of his scam to purchase ultra-high-end vehicles, including a Rolls Royce Cullinan and a Lamborghini Urus.

Ponle will forfeit those items, collectively valued at over $1 million, and pay more than $8 million in restitution to victim companies. Ponle had already forfeited 151 bitcoins, valued at over $4.5 million as of Wednesday.

He was prosecuted despite the lack of an extradition treaty between the UAE and the United States. Federal officials at the DOJ’S Office of International Affairs worked with their UAE counterparties to secure Ponle’s rendition.


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