Rita Odafe
A Nigerian man, Omoyoma Christopher Okoro, aged 50, received a 100-month prison sentence from U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson. Additionally, he will be supervised for another five years after his release.
On September 23, 2024, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Okoro must also pay a substantial restitution amounting to $22,565,929.18.
Okoro’s sentencing took place on September 19, following his conviction on multiple charges earlier in September 2023 during a five-day jury trial. He faced charges including conspiracy to commit fraud and multiple counts of wire and mail fraud related to a financial institution.
According to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Okoro is a naturalized citizen who originally hails from Nigeria and relocated to the U.S. around 2013.
Between 2006 and 2010, Okoro participated in a scheme targeting U.S. attorneys, which is referred to as the “attorney collection scheme.”
This fraudulent operation involved contacting U.S. attorneys under the guise of needing legal help, often claiming they were owed money from a business deal or settlement with a person in America.
Once an attorney showed interest, they would be informed that a settlement was ready, accompanied by a fake “official check” sent through the mail.
The attorney was instructed to deposit the counterfeit check into their escrow account, retain a service fee, and wire the remaining amount to a bank account abroad, usually in East Asia.
Before the attorney could realize the check was fake, the funds wired would be quickly withdrawn by someone in the conspiracy, leaving the attorney and their bank responsible for the losses.
Evidence presented during the trial indicated Okoro’s extensive communication with various conspirators, handling logistics for the foreign financial accounts that received the funds, and maintaining contact with the victimized attorneys.
Okoro was frequently identified as playing a central role in the fraudulent transactions, including confirming fund transfers from attorney victims to foreign accounts.
The operations yielded over $23 million in actual fraud and attempted over $80 million in fraudulent transactions.
Okoro is the latest individual prosecuted for involvement in this fraudulent scheme, following others like Emmanuel Ekhator, Yvette Mathurin, and Kingsley Osagie, as well as Henry Okpalefe.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with prosecution handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys and a former Trial Attorney from the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section.
