The United States Department of Justice has said that a 41-year-old Nigerian, Babajide Adesayo, is at risk of 10 years’ imprisonment following his conviction by a federal jury of laundering more than $2.7m obtained from victims of romance fraud and other online scams.
The US DoJ disclosed this in a statement obtained on its website on Wednesday, noting that Adesayo, a resident of Douglasville, Georgia, was convicted on August 6, 2026, following an eight-day trial.
The statement noted that Adesayo was found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to commit money laundering and 16 counts of transactional money laundering.
According to the statement, the offences occurred between April 2020 and September 2021, when fraudsters allegedly targeted elderly victims online by posing as friends, business associates and romantic partners.
The statement noted that evidence presented in court showed that fraudsters allegedly developed relationships with the victims before requesting money under false claims that they needed funds for business equipment, medical treatment, injuries or to secure their release from prison.
