HARRISBURG, PA — William Nneji, age 56, of Canada, was sentenced Friday to 40 months imprisonment for conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, William Nneji conspired with his codefendant brother, Chima Nneji, codefendant Alex Mgbolu, and other unnamed individuals between July 2002 and May 2010 to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering by receiving money transfers from victims of international mass marketing fraud, processing those transfers using fictitious names, pooling the proceeds of those fraud induced money transfers, and then laundering those proceeds to coconspirators in the United States and Nigeria.
William Nneji agreed that he was responsible for approximately $606,967 in losses to victims processed through two companies, including one owned by his brother, codefendant Chima Nneji, and one owned by his wife. At sentencing, William Nneji was ordered to pay $156,615.65 in restitution to victims. The lower restitution amount is due, in part, to monies compensated to victims as part of the 2012 United States v. MoneyGram deferred prosecution agreement, which established a $100 million restitution fund for MoneyGram customers that were victims of consumer fraud.
Codefendants Chima Nneji and Alex Mgbolu both previously pleaded guilty to the same charge. Chima Nneji and Alex Mgbolu were sentenced to terms of imprisonment in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Both codefendants were extradited to the United States from Canada, whereas William Nneji, from the time of his indictment until November 2021, had been a fugitive.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Romel Sharma prosecuted the case.
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