Two men originally from Nigeria were sentenced in Charlotte, North Carolina, for laundering millions of dollars obtained through fraud schemes that targeted hundreds of victims. The sentencing was announced by Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, with James C. Barnacle, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in North Carolina.
Olumide Olorunfunmi, 40, and Emmanuel Unuigbe, 43, each received a prison sentence of 30 months followed by three years of supervised release. Both were ordered to pay more than $4.6 million in restitution.
Court records show that between 2020 and 2023, Olorunfunmi conspired with Unuigbe and others to launder proceeds from illegal activities including romance scams aimed at elderly individuals and business email compromise schemes. Victims were instructed to transfer money into domestic and international bank accounts controlled by Olorunfunmi, Unuigbe, and their associates. Once the funds were received, they were transferred to other accounts both within the United States and overseas. The scheme resulted in over 125 victims transferring more than $4.5 million linked to illegal activities.
The two men kept part of the proceeds for themselves and also facilitated transfers by exchanging United States Dollars for Nigerian Naira using a “black market” exchange rate through accounts they controlled in Nigeria.
Olorunfunmi and Unuigbe had previously pleaded guilty. Samson Amos, another individual involved in related activity, was sentenced on the same day for conspiring to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. He received five years of probation with six months of home confinement and was also ordered to pay restitution.
“In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Ferguson thanked the FBI for the investigation of the case.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Ryan from Charlotte prosecuted the case.
