The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced the extradition of a 43-year-old Nigerian, Tochuwku Nnebocha, from Poland to face federal charges for allegedly running a global fraud ring that cheated elderly Americans out of millions of dollars.
The DOJ disclosed this in a statement released on its website on Monday, confirming that Nnebocha made his first appearance in a federal court in Miami, Florida. He was arrested by Polish authorities in April 2025 based on an indictment from the Southern District of Florida and has remained in custody in Poland until his extradition.
According to court documents, Nnebocha is accused of operating a fraudulent inheritance scheme that spanned over five years. He and his accomplices allegedly sent personalised letters to elderly Americans, falsely claiming that the recipients were entitled to multimillion-dollar inheritances from deceased relatives in Spain.
Victims were reportedly instructed to pay delivery fees, taxes, or other charges to avoid “government questioning” before receiving their supposed inheritance.
The DOJ explained, “Victims who sent money never received any of the purported inheritance funds. The payments were routed through a complex network of US-based former victims, who were manipulated into forwarding money to the defendants or their associates.”
Nnebocha faces multiple charges, including conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, as well as mail and wire fraud. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison. His punishment will be determined by a federal district court judge in line with the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Two other Nigerians, Okezie Bonaventure Ogbata (extradited from Portugal) and Ehis Lawrence Akhimie (extradited from the United Kingdom), have already pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 97 months in prison each for their roles in the same scheme.
The DOJ described the case as part of its broader effort to protect senior citizens from a wide range of scams, including romance fraud, lottery fraud, tech support fraud, and grandparent scams.
“These confidence schemes exploit the vulnerability of seniors and often result in significant financial losses,” the statement added.
The investigation, according to DOJ, involved the Consumer Protection Branch, the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the FBI Legal Attaché in Poland, INTERPOL, and Polish authorities.
The DOJ emphasised, “This extradition underscores our commitment to holding perpetrators accountable, no matter where they operate, and to safeguarding seniors from fraudulent schemes that can devastate lives.”
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