UAE-Based Influencer Gets 8 Years in US Prison After Forfeiting 151 BTC
A Nigerian influencer hailing from UAE was sentenced to eight years in prison in the USA. The person in question known pseudonymously as Mr.Woodbery was charged with scamming businesses in the country.
Scammer Steals Nearly $8 Million from US Businesses
He is now convicted of siphoning around $8 million in funds from various businesses operating in the country. The person in question is now liable to pay legal damages in the form of luxury watches and cars. At the same time, he is also expected to forfeit around 151 Bitcoin in his possession. At the current market price, the value of Bitcoin under his ownership is valued at around $4.5 million.
The report issued by the Department of Justice or DOJ has revealed that 31 years old convict named Olalekan Jacob Ponle who is known as Mr. Woodbery and sometimes assumes the name of Mark Kain has continued to scam business enterprises in the USA since 2019.
The scammers have been trying to evade regulatory scrutiny by converting the stolen funds into BTC. At the same time, the scammer has been busy collecting a fleet of luxury cars with stolen money.
It seems that the scammer in question has been fond of collecting luxury cars. Law enforcement officials have discovered that he owned limited edition cars such as Rolls Royce Cullinan, Mercedes-Benz G-class, and Lamborghini Urus.
On the other hand, the scammer was also collecting valuable watches such as Patek Philippe and Rolex as per the findings of DOJ officials. The authorities have reportedly confiscated these luxury possessions since the conviction.
He has been conducting scams where the employees of the targeted enterprise were tricked into clicking on phishing links. In this manner, Mr.Woodbery was able to hack into the email accounts of the company and the employee. From there he was able to transfer money from their accounts to his accounts.
As soon as the funds were deposited, the mules that were working for the scammer would convert the entire stash into Bitcoin. Woodbery has plans to steal around $51 million from various businesses hailing from, California, New York, Kansas, Michigan, Iowa, and Chicago among others.
Ponle was under investigation for a long time by FBI agents. FBI agents arrested him from UAE in 2020 and deported him back to America. During the investigation process, he denied the allegation in the beginning but eventually conceded to the charges of wire fraud at the start of the current year.
He was operating with a band of criminals. However, the federal agents also arrested his second-hand man Hushpuppi who has received an 11-year sentence.
The second scammer in question was running an international crime ring with plans to loot $100 million from a Football club. He was also in contact with North Korea to help them launder millions of stolen money from a bank in Malta.
Meanwhile, the mastermind in the case Ponle has received 8 years and a restitution of $8.03 million. He is also under charge to surrender his luxury goods and paying 151 Bitcoins to his victims as compensation.
