Two Newham Men Jailed for £674K Online Romance Scam
Two men from Newham have been slammed behind bars for running a massive online romance fraud racket, scamming women and a man across the UK, USA, and Switzerland out of over £674,000.
Fraudsters Sentenced at Southwark Crown Court
- James Olagbaiye, 47, of Barking Road, received four years and four months.
- Adesola Adebayo, 38, also of Barking Road, was handed four years and six months.
Both pleaded guilty at Southwark Crown Court in March for conspiracy to launder money, fraud by false representation linked to the dating scam, and conspiracy to commit fraud connected to COVID-19 Bounce Back Loans.
High-Profile Victims Targeted Across Continents
Detectives with the Met’s Specialist Crime Command uncovered five victims. Among them was a woman in her 60s from Switzerland, who lost a staggering £612,000. She was duped into believing she was in a relationship with a British doctor and biologist living in London. The scammers even provided a fake British passport photo of an older gentleman and spun a story about producing ventilation machines for the NHS during the pandemic.
The victim was hoodwinked into loaning money, which was funnelled through UK and US-based money mule bank accounts controlled by the conmen. The scammer also claimed he’d been arrested abroad and demanded more cash — all lies.
The fraud only came to light after the arrest of the men in Newham on 29 October 2020, following a lengthy investigation that began with another arrest in August 2020. Mobile phones and bank statements seized during the arrests revealed further victims in the UK and the US.
Scam Extended to COVID Bounce Back Loan Fraud
Further investigations uncovered Adebayo’s attempts to claim nearly £100,000 in COVID-19 Bounce Back Loans by using a trusted associate’s address to open bank accounts for fraudulent loans. Thankfully, that part of the scam failed.
Detective Constable Chris Collins, Met Specialist Crime: “These men have spun a web of lies and abused their victims’ trust in the most terrible way. Anyone in an online relationship should be extremely cautious about requests for money, no matter how convincing the story.”
Assets to Be Seized, Victims to Be Compensated
A confiscation investigation is underway to seize the criminals’ assets and attempt to return stolen funds to their victims.
If you suspect fraud or someone trying to access your pension, contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040.
