Three people were sentenced for roles in a romance scam that targeted victims nationwide and resulted in the death of one elderly victim.
Salma Abdalkareem, 29 of Piscataway, New Jersey, Chinagorom Onwumere, 36, of Piscataway, New Jersey, and Stephen O. Anagor, 37, of Lakewood, Washington, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Clifton L. Corker in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
Judge Corker sentenced Abdalkareem to 51 months, Onwumere to 84 months, and Anagor to 108 months. Following their imprisonment, Onwumere and Anagor will be on supervised release for five years, and Abdalkareem will be on supervised release for three years. All will be required to repay the victims $388,500 in restitution.
As part of written plea agreements filed with the court, Abdalkareem pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Onwumere pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting aggravated stalking resulting in death, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering, and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Abdalkareem pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering, and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Anagor pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting aggravated stalking resulting in death, and one count of aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft.
According to filed court documents, Anagor and Onwumere (both from Nigeria) met during military training in South Carolina in June 2023. Anagor recruited Onwumere and Onwumere’s wife, Abdalkareem (a citizen of Sudan), to assist a relative in Nigeria in carrying out romance scams perpetrated on victims around the United States.
Under the scam, the relative in Nigeria would impersonate famous celebrities and con victims, usually elderly adults targeted online, into believing they were in a romantic relationship with famous celebrities. Members of the conspiracy would then engage in various devices to obtain money from the victims, such as the need for help with taxes on luxury vehicles, background investigation fees needed for employment, membership fees that would permit unique access to the celebrities, etc.
On multiple occasions, victims were told that the scammers were with federal law enforcement and had to pay fees and fines to halt investigations initiated by the celebrities or their management. As part of this law enforcement scam, the conspirators would impersonate high-ranking officials with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Justice, including the former Director of the FBI and the former Attorney General of the United States.
Once a victim agreed to provide funds, members of the conspiracy in Nigeria would then direct them to provide money to other members of the conspiracy in the United States, such as Anagor, Abdalkareem, and Onwumere. They would deposit checks, keep a share of the proceeds, and then transfer funds to others in Nigeria or the United States.
One of the victims was a retired teacher from Jonesborough, Tennessee.
He believed he was speaking with a well-known celebrity, and they had begun a romantic relationship. Eventually, members of the conspiracy posed as the former Director of the FBI and former Attorney General of the United States and advised the victim that the celebrity’s management had filed a complaint, and he was under investigation. Through a series of harassing emails, the scammers advised that he had to pay exorbitant fees and fines to make the investigation go away and seal it from the public. Following these instructions, the victim then sent five checks totaling $86,900 to Onwumere and Abdalkareem.
These funds represented the victim’s entire life savings (and included the proceeds of a loan the victim took out on his truck to have enough for the final payment). After sending his life savings, the scammers then advised the victim that he was responsible for medical bills because the stress he had caused the actress had resulted in her hospitalization.
In his last known text messages, the victim—believing he was speaking with the celebrity—advised that he had no more money and was going to end his life. On October 23, 2023, the victim committed suicide by a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head.
The same scheme targeted multiple victims around the United States and used the identities of at least four celebrities, the former Director of the FBI, and the former Attorney General of the United States.
U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III of the Eastern District of Tennessee , Colin Jackson, HSI (Homeland Security Investigations), and, Special Agent in Charge Paul DelleDonne, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, Cyber Field Office made the announcement.
The criminal indictment was the result of an investigation led by HSI, Army CID, and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener III represented the United States.