Three Nigerians living in the United States — Kamaldeen Karaole, Stephen Olamigoke, and Johnson Omodusonu — have been handed prison sentences totaling more than eight years for defrauding the US government of $520,910 through a COVID-19 unemployment benefits scam.
One of the convicts also consented to deportation to Nigeria after serving his prison term.
According to a statement from the US Department of Justice on Thursday, the fraudsters stole at least 168 Unemployment Insurance debit cards belonging to different individuals in 2020.
Court records showed that between August and October of that year, the trio, working with accomplices outside the United States, exploited stolen debit cards and passwords to file fraudulent unemployment claims.
The statement further disclosed that 98 of the stolen cards were used to withdraw money at multiple Automated Teller Machines across the country.
It read, *“These cards, issued by the states of California, Arizona, and Nevada, were being periodically loaded with benefits. None of the cards belonged to the members of the conspiracy — they were all in the names of real individuals.
“To obtain the cards, other members of the conspiracy located outside the United States used stolen personally identifiable information to file numerous false unemployment claims with various state workforce agencies.
“The trio used 98 of the cards to withdraw cash from various ATMs in and around Indianapolis, often making multiple withdrawals within the span of just a few minutes. In total, they completed 529 withdrawals, stealing $520,910 in benefits.”*
Following their arrests, the defendants were arraigned on conspiracy, aggravated identity theft, and other related charges.
Karaole, 24, pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit access device fraud, and access device fraud. He was sentenced to four years and three months in prison, along with two years of supervised release.
Olamigoke, 23, was convicted of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and access device fraud. He received a sentence of two and a half years in prison plus two years of supervised release.
Omodusonu, 24, of Indianapolis, was also found guilty of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and access device fraud. He was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of supervised release.
*“Each defendant was also ordered to pay $520,910 in restitution.
“At the time Stephen Olamigoke entered his guilty plea, he acknowledged that upon completion of his sentence, he will be subject to removal from the United States,”* the statement concluded.
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