Sobanke Idris Sunday Adereti, son of the late monarch of Iwaraland in Ile-Ife, has been sentenced to federal prison for federal fraud violations in the Eastern District of Texas, United States.
Adereti, 24, pleaded guilty on Oct. 25, 2021, to passport fraud and attempted bank fraud, and was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle.
According to court documents, in March 2021, Adereti presented a false passport and a falsely procured certified check when trying to open a bank account in Flower Mound, Texas.
The check was purchased by a fraud victim who was induced into sending money to Adereti, falsely known as “Robinson Elijah.”
He was likely acting as a money mule to cash the victim’s checks. When Adereti was arrested, he had additional passports and bank statements in other names in his possession.
Investigators determined that Adereti was also connected to scams related to business email compromise fraud and other government program fraud.
Additionally, evidence showed that Adereti was the son of a Nigerian traditional ruler and entered the United States on a visitor’s visa in 2018, which has since expired.
His dad Oba Olayiwola Adereti died 13 August 2018.
“Scams to steal money are around every corner,” said U.S. Attorney Brit Featherston. “Thanks to the keen eye of bank officials, Adereti was apprehended. Unfortunately, many of these crimes target our vulnerable elder population. It is up to all of us to share this awareness and look out for our greatest generation.”
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Adereti with federal violations on April 7, 2021.
In another cyber crime case, a Nigerian was extradited from the United Kingdom to Bismarck, North Dakota, to face multiple charges concerning money laundering and fraud.
Kolawole Bamidele Akande (also known as Patric Elis Ferguson, David Louis Wallace or Ramos Joseph Hogan) made an initial appearance in court and was detained pending trial.
According to the indictment, Akande was involved in a “complicated” computer intrusion scheme targeting a Dickinson company, which was allegedly defrauded out of $348,000.
He, and others, obtained checks from the company through the mail and deposited them in accounts in financial institutions in Texas, police say.
Once the money from the checks was available for withdrawal and transfer, the money was withdrawn and transferred to conceal and disguise their nature, location, source and ownership.
Akande is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, mail fraud and money laundering.
Two codefendants were previously sentenced in North Dakota.
Olawale Sule was sentenced to two years on Feb. 17, 2021, for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and Olumwafemi Elijah Olasode was sentenced to time served on Sept. 7, 2021, misprision of felony.
The latter is a crime that occurs when someone knows a felony has been committed but fails to inform the authorities about it.
