A federal jury in the United States has found a Nigerian man Saheed Sunday Owolabi guilty of multiple cybercrime offenses including wire fraud money laundering and romance scam activities.
Owolabi 34 was convicted on Wednesday on two counts conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
The US Department of Justice announced the verdict in a statement.
He is scheduled for sentencing in January 2026 and faces as many as 40 years in prison along with a possible fine of 250000 dollars and three years of supervised release.
According to court filings and evidence presented during trial, Owolabi pretended to be a woman online to build romantic relationships with unsuspecting American men.
Investigators said he deceived victims into sending him money and sensitive personal information.
Court records also showed that he and his accomplices used accounts owned by victims to launder proceeds from other fraudulent schemes.
One of the highlighted cases involved Owolabi stealing and laundering more than 120000 dollars from a victim in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Prosecutors said he defrauded hundreds more through similar operations.
“Fraud schemes like this drain millions from hardworking people in our communities” US attorney Ellis Boyle said.
“We will continue to work with our federal partners to identify investigate and prosecute those who abuse the anonymity of the internet to enrich themselves by stealing from our citizens.”