Memphis, TN – Caesar Oruade, 39, and Ayana Saunders, 37, of Hawthorne, California, have been sentenced to federal prison for wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to launder money. Kevin G. Ritz, United States Attorney, announced today.
According to United States Attorney Ritz and information presented in court, in May 2017, a computer intrusion at a real estate company resulted in a Memphis woman’s $76,000 down payment on a home being diverted to the bank account of a co-conspirator. Agents investigating the case traced the funds and found that the $76,000 had been "chopped" and sent to several other U.S. bank account holders before ultimately being wired to an account in Nigeria.
Many others across the United States and in Canada had been similarly victimized in their attempts to purchase real estate. The proceeds of romance scams and “hard money” loan scams were also flowing through the same accounts. Bank accounts belonging to defendant Ayana Saunders generally served as the last domestic stop for funds before leaving the United States. Testimony at trial showed that Saunders would take some of the funds before wiring the remaining monies to the Nigerian bank account of her husband, Caesar Oruade.
"These sentences are the result of state and federal law enforcement working together to protect the public from real estate and romance scammers and bringing those responsible to justice," said Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Memphis Field Office. “The FBI continues to hold as a priority the targeting of domestic and foreign fraudsters who seek to scam innocent people out of their hard-earned money."
Senior United States District Judge J. Daniel Breen sentenced Oruade and Saunders to federal prison for 70 months and 60 months, respectively, followed by three years of supervised release. The defendants were also ordered to pay more than one million dollars in restitution. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) – Memphis Division, United States Secret Service (USSS), FBI – Los Angeles Division and the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
United States Attorney Kevin Ritz thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Debra Ireland and Raney Irwin, who prosecuted this case, as well as law enforcement partners who investigated the case.
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