Eleven Nigerians have been indicted by the United States authorities for defrauding elderly Americans in romance scams. xThe 11 persons were arrested in a Wednesday morning operation and have been charged for a number of financial crimes, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. They were among the 35 persons arrested for fraud by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) who allegedly carried out scams worth $17 million. “The only mistake these victims make is being generous to the wrong people.”If convicted, the defendants face up 20 years in federal prison on the wire fraud conspiracy counts and up to 10 years in federal prison on the money laundering conspiracy counts. The FBI estimates that more than 20,000 Americans have lost more than $600 million in romance scams in 2020 alone.

Source: The Guardian September 25, 2021 10:30 UTC