Franklin Nwadialo, a newly elected chairman of Ogbaru LGA in
Anambra state, has been arrested in Texas, United States (US), for allegedly
running a $3.3 million romance scam.
The US department of justice said in a statement that
Nwadialo is facing a 14-count charge and risks a 20-year sentence if found
guilty.
The federal bureau of investigation (FBI) reportedly
arrested the 40-year-old LGA chairman on arrival in Texas.
He would be transferred to the Western District of
Washington for arraignment.
“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 statement reads.
“Nwadialo used false images for his profile and typically
told the victims that he was in the military and deployed overseas so he could
not meet the victims in person.
“Using these personas, Nwadialo invented many reasons he
needed the victims to send him money.
“In one such case in 2020, he indicated he had been fined by
the military for revealing his location to the victim. He asked the victim to
help him pay the $150,000 fine. In all, that victim was defrauded of at least
$2.4 million.”
The US department of justice cited another instance where
the accused contacted a second victim in 2019 to help move funds from US
accounts to accounts controlled by him and his co-schemers.
“In this instance, Nwadialo represented that he needed the
help moving money in connection with his father’s death. The victim transferred
at least $330,000 to the accounts controlled by the defendant,” the department
stated.
“A third victim was defrauded by Nwadialo when he told her
that he was investing money for her.
“He claimed that a check she received from another victim
was proceeds from her investments, and he had her “reinvest” the money in a
specific cryptocurrency account that he controlled. The victim transferred at
least $270,000 at Nwadialo’s direction.
“Finally, in August 2020, Nwadialo defrauded another victim
who he met on an online dating site and caused this victim to transfer at least
$310,000 by claiming he needed financial assistance, including help paying for
his father’s funeral or his son’s school tuition.
“The 14 counts of wire fraud relate to the communications
with Nwadialo and the wiring of funds from victims to the defendant and his
co-schemers.”
The case is being prosecuted by Sok Jiang, an assistant
United States attorney.
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