Metro News
FBI declares Nigerian wanted over $30m fraud
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, has declared a Nigerian, Chidozie Collins Obasi, wanted over $30m fraud.
The FBI said Obasi was indicted and wanted for defrauding New York State more than $30 million by posing as a ventilator seller during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Aside from posing as ventilator seller, the FBI said the suspect targeted Americans through a spam email campaign offering illegitimate “work from home” jobs
The security agency said the 29-year-old Obasi perpetrated the fraud from Nigeria, with the help of co-conspirators in Canada and elsewhere.
In a statement by the Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, US Attorney Jacqueline Romero, said the suspect was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, six counts of mail fraud, and 16 counts of wire fraud.
The statement issued on Friday read, “The defendant and his co-conspirators are alleged to have obtained more than $31,000,000 through this multi-faceted fraud scheme, with the overwhelming majority of that money – more than $30 million – coming from the State of New York for the intended purchase of ventilators.
“The scheme alleged in the Indictment began in September 2018, with a spam email campaign that offered phony “work from home” jobs. When a person responded to the phony job offer, Obasi or a co-conspirator posed as a representative of a legitimate company, often a supposed medical equipment supplier based outside the United States, and offered the person a job as the company’s U.S. representative with responsibilities including collecting on outstanding invoices.
“A co-conspirator in Canada then sent the new “employee” counterfeit checks purportedly from customers of the company, and the new “employee” deposited the checks, took a commission, and wired the rest of the money to a foreign bank account ostensibly owned by the fake company. As alleged in the Indictment, Obasi and his co-conspirators obtained more than $1 million in this manner.
“The Indictment further alleges that in approximately March 2020, soon after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States and ventilators were in high demand, Obasi posed as a representative of an Indonesian-based medical supply company offering ventilators for sale, and claimed to have a large stockpile of ventilators manufactured by a German company whose headquarters was in Telford, PA. The defendant allegedly convinced a medical equipment broker in the U.S. to broker sales of these non-existent ventilators, and ultimately deceived the State of New York into wiring more than $30 million for the purchase of ventilators that did not exist. Obasi continued to target other potential customers with this same scam, including hospitals.
“Later, in approximately June 2020, the Indictment alleges that Obasi and his co-conspirators took advantage of the EID Loan program by using stolen identities of U.S. citizens to apply for and obtain more than $135,000 in EID Loan proceeds.
“Obasi is presently a fugitive, and the United States is seeking to locate and arrest him. Anyone with knowledge of his whereabouts should contact their local FBI Office.
“If caught and convicted, Obasi faces a maximum sentence of 621 years in prison, a five-year period of supervised release, and a $5,750,000 fine. Obasi also will be required to make full restitution of the more than $31,000,000 that he obtained by fraud.
Obasi
“The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael S. Lowe.”
The Rivers state Police command says four people and over 70 vehicles were burnt in Friday’s fuel tanker explosion in the state.
The explosion occurred along Eleme section of the East-West Road in the state at about 7:30 p.m.
SP Grace Iringe-Koko, spokesman of command, who confirmed the sad incident in Port Harcourt on Saturday, said that the tragedy occurred following a collision between a heavy-duty truck and a petrol-laden tanker.
At the scene of the accident, there were seveal burnt vehicles and charred bodies of victims on the road.
The incident happened a few metres from the Indorama Petrochemical Company and roughly 10 kilometres from the Port Harcourt Refinery.
There was an extensive gridlock stretching over five kilometres on the road under reconstruction as part of the N200 billion Ring Road project by the Rivers Government.
State government trucks, accompanied by police and Federal Road Safety Commission officials, were seen evacuating the burnt vehicles to facilitate traffic flow.
An eyewitness, Onyeka Ubani, who narrowly escaped the explosion, said that while transporting passengers on his newly acquired tricycle (Keke), they heard a deafening sound ahead of them.
“The loud sound was followed by a massive fireball, causing everyone to flee for safety.
“We managed to escape, but unfortunately, my Keke caught fire in the process.
“I thank God for my life, but I am at a loss about what to do with my life now, having recently purchased this Keke,” a distraught Ubani said.
Another eyewitness, David Jumbo, said that he was returning home from work around the Akpajo axis of the East-West Road when the incident occurred.
He narrated that after the explosion, vehicles and victims were caught by fire, which stretched over 200 metres.
“It happened so quickly that it could be likened to scenes from Hollywood movies.
“While I was fleeing for safety, I saw a pregnant woman struggling to exit one of the commercial vehicles.
“Unfortunately, when I returned this morning, I found the deceased pregnant woman trapped in the bus as she tried to escape,” he recounted.
Jumbo attributed the accident to the recklessness of truck drivers, who disregarded road warnings despite the ongoing road construction.
Gov. Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers, who visited the accident scene, described it as tragic and sad.
He urged motorists to always exercise caution while on the road.
“This incident is not a pleasant one, we recorded a huge number of vehicles destroyed and lives lost.
“I have already asked the relevant agencies to brief us on how we can support the bereaved families to mitigate their losses.
“This incident would have been avoided if the motorists had adhered to proper conduct. People should ply this road with caution,” Fubara said.
Siminalayi Fubara, governor of Rivers, says the state government will support he families of victims affected by the multiple tanker explosion.
Fubara spoke on Saturday when he visited the scene of the accident alongside Olatunji Disu, commissioner for police in Rivers, and Maximus Nwafor, commissioner for energy.
On Friday night, tankers laden with petroleum products burst into flames on a section of the East-West road in Eleme, Rivers state, leaving an unspecified number of people killed.
The inferno which had also left travellers stranded for hours, engulfed over 50 vehicles, with some bodies found burnt beyond recognition in cars and in a nearby drainage.
The governor directed security agencies to conduct a thorough assessment of the accident to facilitate the provision of aid to families of victims.
“Yesterday around 7-8pm, we got information about a very serious inferno that was caused by a tanker conveying PMS,” he said.
“I got the information through the MD of Indorama and immediately alerted the security agencies. From what we are seeing this morning, it was not a very pleasant case.
“We recorded, from what I am seeing, a huge number of vehicles being destroyed and souls lost.
“I have already asked the security agencies to give us a full brief. So that we can come into the situation fully by seeing how much we can support the families of the bereaved and see how we can cushion the effect of the losses.”
The governor also lamented the deteriorating condition of the Eleme section of the East-West road.
“We all know the situation of this road; it is unfortunate. Most of our people when plying this road do so with caution,” he added.
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