Olayinka Ilumsa Sunmola,
32,a Nigerain, on Wednesday, March 2, pleaded guilty to eight counts of a
federal indictment and admitted that he was the ringleader of a group that
successfully wooed hundreds of women online, then convinced them to send cash
to bail him out of phony emergencies..
Sunmola seduced women
online by creating fake online profiles using photos and names of real American
men, including claiming to a former U.S. soldier. He sent flowers, candies,
stuffed animals and more to his victims, conning them into believing that each
was his true love. Once the women were convinced of his love for them, he would
request money from them claiming phony emergencies. Some of the women sent
thousands of dollars.
The victims were not
named but lived around the country, including in Mascoutah and Bond County in
Illinois and St. Charles and St. Louis counties in Missouri.
In one case, Sunmola
tricked one woman into cashing counterfeit or stolen traveler’s checks. She
contemplated suicide when arrested. He lured another into performing sexual
acts, which he recorded via webcam, they said. He then threatened to ruin her
life by publishing the recordings online if she didn't send him cash, warning
that by the time he was done with her she would want to kill herself.
A Bond County woman
bought electronics and shipped them to Sunmola, reshipped items he’d bought
using stolen credit card information and took out cash advances on a credit
card, forcing herself into bankruptcy with debts of at least $98,000, the
indictment claims.
The investigation
included the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Federal Trade Commission,
Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Secret Service and the Illinois
Attorney General’s Office, as well as South African officials, who investigated
Sunmola's activities there and started forfeiture proceedings for his assets
there.
Sunmola was indicted in
U.S. District Court in East St. Louis in 2013 on mail fraud, wire fraud,
conspiracy, and interstate extortion charges. He was arrested in August 2014 by
Scotland Yard as he was about to board a flight from London to South Africa,
then extradited here to face the charges.
"Basically, the
evidence established that Sunmola, a citizen of the federal Republic of
Nigeria, was a ringleader of a criminal organization operating withing South
Africa that targeted and stole from hundreds of women across the United
States," Acting United States Attorney James Porter stated.
"Our office will
continue to pursue justice for these victims in Sunmola's prison sentence and
in our never-ending efforts to get restitution." Porter added.
Sentencing
has been set for June 17, 2016. Sunmola could get up to 127 years and a fine of
$250,000 for each count he faces. a
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