Franklin Nwadialo, the newly elected chairman of the Ogbaru Local Government Area in Anambra State Nigeria, has been arrested in Texas, United States (US), for reportedly conducting a $3.3 million romance fraud.
According to a statement from the US Department of Justice, Nwadialo is charged with 14 counts and faces a 20-year term if convicted.
According to reports, the FBI detained the 40-year-old LGA chairman as he arrived in Texas.
For his arraignment, he would be sent to the Western District of Washington.
“According to the indictment, Nwadialo used various versions of the name ‘Giovanni’ when he met his victims online on websites such as Match, Zoosk, and Christian Café,” the press release states.
“Nwadialo utilised fake photographs for his profile and frequently informed the victims that he was in the military and was deployed overseas, so he couldn’t meet them in person.
“Using these aliases, Nwadialo created several reasons for the victims to send him money.
“In one such case in 2020, he stated that he had been fined by the military for disclosing his location to the victim.” He requested the victim to assist him pay the $150,000 fine. Overall, the victim lost at least $2.4 million.
The US Department of Justice mentioned another case in which the accused contacted a second victim in 2019 to assist in the transfer of monies from US accounts to accounts held by him and his co-schemers.
“In this case, Nwadialo claimed that he needed aid moving money in connection with his father’s death. “The victim transferred at least $330,000 to the defendant’s accounts,” the department added.
“Nwadialo conned a third victim by claiming that he was investing money for her.
“He claimed that a cheque she received from another victim was the proceeds of her investments, and he had her “reinvest” the money in a cryptocurrency account under his control. The victim transferred at least $270,000 at Nwadialo’s request.
“Finally, in August 2020, Nwadialo defrauded another victim he met on an online dating site, causing this victim to transfer at least $310,000 by claiming he needed financial assistance, such as help paying for his father’s funeral or his son’s school tuition.”
An assistant U.S. attorney named Sok Jiang is prosecuting the case.
