Crime News
Nigerian Fraudsters Arrested In London Over £2.7m Lottery Scam That Led To Murder
Osas Odia
Dec 6, 2012 – Nigerian Fraudsters Arrested In London UK Over £2.7m Lotto Scam That Led To Murder
Two Nigerian fraudsters, whose global £2.7m scam had deadly consequences for one family they mercilessly ripped off, were jailed today.
Police identified a total of thirteen victims all over the world, who each lost an average of £207,000, after the duo convinced them they were due an Australian lottery pay-out, inheritance, investment benefit or were sold non-existent heavy plant machinery.
Obinnam Nwokolo, 37, of 20 Chesworth Close, Erith, who amassed a valuable property portfolio in the UK and Nigeria, received six years and four months and Uchechhukwu Onuoha, 40, of Aspen Green, Erith, who entered this country on a student visa, received five years and two months.
Both pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to conspiracy to defraud between October 1, 2008 and September 15 last year.
One of their victims, Betty McClellan, 62, of Hyde Park, Los Angeles was shot dead by her husband Hersey McClellan, 63, who then shot himself on June 20, 2010 after she wired £264,000 — blowing the couple’s hard-earned pension.
She transferred the sums to accounts controlled by fellow Nigerians Sergius Ene, 44, of 111 Rushden Gardens, Ilford and Osas Odia, 33, of 15 Windrush Court, Chichester Wharf, Erith, who both admitted conspiring to launder criminal property.
Ene, who received sixteen months in March for a £27,000 Euromilions lottery scam on an 83 year-old Northampton pensioner, was jailed for two years and eight months. for laundering £342,400.
The accountant, a former Haringey Council housing benefit officer, drove a Mercedes with a personalised ‘ENE’ number plate. He is currently appealing deportation and it was revealed the mother of his three children entered into a sham marriage with a French citizen of African origin just to stay in the UK.
Student Odia, who laundered £149,000, was deported in 2005 as an illegal overstayer after a forged passport conviction, but is now a permanent resident after marrying a UK national. He will be sentenced on February 11 so he can complete a management degree.
Victims were telephoned, emailed or written to by Nwokolo and Onuoha, who between them spent at least £22,500 on stationary supplies as they convinced the dupes to pay for admin fees, insurance, certificates and other charges to release funds due to them.
The criminals convinced Betty McClellan, 62, that she had won $2.8m on the Australian lottery. She sent them £264,000 to ‘cover tax and admin costs’
Some victims paid money to a bogus charity claiming to assist West African refugees, and one even paid for a non-existent U.S. Army General to ship his trunk of belongings from Afghanistan to Australia.
‘These monies were placed in a series of bank accounts and laundered,’ said prosecutor Mr. Andrew Evans. ‘The fraud was carried out on an international scale.’
Mrs McClellan was convinced she had won $2.8m on the Australian lottery and sent £264,000 to cover taxes and admin costs to release the win.
‘When her husband discovered she had lost all of their pension savings he shot her dead and then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide,’ added Mr. Evans. Their bodies were found by their son.
An Indiana farmer, believing he had a claim on a £14.9m inheritance, lost over £339,000 and a Venezuelan businessman lost £163,000 buying a mobile crane Nwokolo and father-of-two Onuoha advertised for sale on a Spanish website.
A Bristol woman lost £312,000 chasing a £1.8m Australian lottery win and found herself arrested after paying the counterfeit £158,000 cheque the defendants sent her into her account.
‘She was buying a new home and intended to settle the balance from the winnings she was expecting.
‘She is now living in sheltered accommodation and feels vulnerable and extremely embarrassed and her family have lost their inheritance.’
Father-of-three Nwokolo even bought three 1,350 per-hour letter-folding machines to increase the volume of mail shots and his home contained lists with details of thousands of individuals and businesses.
Onuoha had a pile of 593 scam letters ready for postage when police raided the home he rented off Nwokolo and officers also found a prepared ‘script’ he used when duping victims over the phone.
‘It is difficult to think of a larger advance free fraud than this,’ announced Judge Jeremy Gold QC.
‘It is on an enormous scale.
‘Thousands of emails and letters were sent out across the world promising money from non-existent relatives from inheritances or non-existence lottery wins.
‘You preyed on the naivety or generosity of people to extract large amounts of money from them with devastating effects on their personal lives.
‘I regard this fraud as one that falls into the most serious category of advanced fee fraud, targeting vulnerable victims.’
Proceeds of Crime Act confiscation proceedings will follow. (Source: DailyMail UK)
Ola
December 6, 2012 at 1:54 PM
I think sending these guys to jail doesnt make any sense. Better is to k*** them.
Japhet
December 6, 2012 at 2:53 PM
I think taking such kind of people to jail is allowing some more and serious scams when they are released and also there’s a possibility of them to escape in jail as you can just see to their deeds. Therefore ,better just hang or shot ’em to death as they caused deaths and vulnarability in the world.
Loveisthegreatest
December 6, 2012 at 3:58 PM
with dey happen to dis our naija broda self na only dey de born for suffering season of all time in nigeria … you’re guys dat is bring disgrace to our nation should stop it ooooh for our new generation to also come am ate inside ..change change change for your sin and make nigeria proud… de all world na know nigeria has a thief country and corruption… Sister aand sister government and our father and mother corruption nor dey paid let be proud of our country nigeria–
igoche
December 6, 2012 at 4:18 PM
The sentence is too light.
Innocentia Chika Nwadinigwe
December 6, 2012 at 7:56 PM
this people keep destroying Nigeria image and they xpect tourism to be patronize in Nigeria.
ORONIMIHWU moses ugoh
December 6, 2012 at 8:05 PM
Send these guyz to jail, some people have FRAUDED me too last two weeks money worth #50,000.00 only. Just kill them by hanging. PLS! PLS!! PLS!!! help us to monitor a site on net,,, THE NAME OF THE SITE IS ESKIMI.COM, that site is engulf by fraudster, 419.help us
jerry audu
December 6, 2012 at 9:52 PM
a story i read is that nigeria is among the most corrupt countries in the world,and another story tells me that a nigerian oil magnet is the richest black woman in the world.who’s fooling who?
bruno
December 7, 2012 at 8:37 AM
At least these once are fraudulently working for a living. What about our government and political office holders whom we pay huge salaries and astronomous allowances to, and they still steal the country blind? Those of you that are recommending that they should be killed, how many of your thiefing and looting government and political office holders in Nigeria have you killed? Nigerians are plain stupid, spineless tribalists. if none of the names of the fraudsters sound like the one from your village, is that a reason for you to recommend death sentence for a crime that does not carry such a penalty? Most of you come out dancing and protesting criminal trials of your thiefing ex-governors and politicians. Ibori was criminally discharged and acquitted of the one million stupid charges framed against him by a non-focused clowning efcc, only to be jailed in London. Foolish Nigerians who has bewitched you? God gave us brain for reasoning. The mouth is definitely not for vomitting foolish thoughts. Be wise! The British law has made adequate provisions for such crimes. They do not function on barbaric sentiments like some of us do. Bode George is a criminal celebrity of the Yoruba land, none of you tribalists have been bold enough to recommend death by hanging or firing squad for him.
Africans
December 8, 2012 at 10:41 PM
At list i have finally read from a brave african. The rest of the above comments are made by n**** who cant reason.Or do not know exploitation effects on them.do not have more to say
mrs ohio
September 11, 2013 at 9:04 PM
BLESS ARE THE PEOPLE WHO DECEIVED YOU,BECAUSE YOU ARE THE FOOLS,THIS IS WHAT THE BIBLE SAY, , IT MEANS IN YORUBA THAT IBUKUN NI FUN ENITI O FI OBO LO ENI, EGBE NI FUN ENITI O GBA, A LOT OF PEOPLE WANT SOMTHING FOR NOTHING THAT WAS THE REASONS THEY ARE VICTIM. IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOE EASY MONEY THIS IS THE RESULT , SO I DO NOT BLAME THE FRAUD STAR.