Two Nigerian nationals, Olutayo Sunday Ogunlaja and Abel Adeyi Daramola face up to 20 years in a United States federal prison after being convicted of orchestrating a $560,000 international romance scam.

The Department of Justice announced the conviction in a statement released on Monday, January 6, 2025.

“Following a four-day trial and less than three hours of deliberation, a federal jury returned a guilty verdict against two Nigerian nationals who participated in an international romance scheme,” the statement read.

Court documents and trial evidence revealed that the scheme began in January 2016 with the creation of a fictitious persona named “Glenn Brown” on the dating website eHarmony.com.

Ogunlaja and Daramola worked with another individual who used the fake profile to establish a romantic relationship with a victim in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The victim was deceived into believing that their financial support was essential for “Glenn Brown” to complete a purported construction project in Malaysia and return safely to the United States.

Between January 2016 and April 2017, the victim transferred approximately $560,000 to various accounts in the United States, Canada, and Malaysia.

On September 27, 2016, the victim wired $28,000 to a Woodforest Bank account registered under “Daramola Cars,” as directed by the fraudulent “Glenn Brown.”

Daramola then transferred $18,000 to a seafood importer in Denmark and issued a $14,000 check.

Although Daramola denied involvement, FBI investigators uncovered incriminating evidence, including text and WhatsApp messages on his phone.

These communications revealed his role in providing bank accounts for multiple fraud schemes, including romance scams.

Ogunlaja’s involvement included receiving fraudulent funds through his Bank of America account.

On March 9 and March 15, 2016, “Glenn Brown” instructed the victim to deposit $20,000 in cash into Ogunlaja’s account.

Ogunlaja later made several cash withdrawals and transferred funds to Daramola’s account.

After their conviction, the court ordered that Ogunlaja and Daramola remain on conditional release pending sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Each faces up to 20 years in federal prison, with no possibility of parole under the federal system.

The announcement of the verdict was made on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, by U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office. The FBI Albuquerque Field Office conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy Peña is prosecuting the case.