Obinwanne Okeke was ordered to repay approximately $ 10.7 million fraudulently received from identified victims of his five-year or more wire fraud in the US and elsewhere. PREMIUM TIMES reported.
Eastern District of Virginia judge Rebecca Smith sentenced him to 10 years in prison on February 16 and also ordered the confiscation of his identified assets from the US government.
One of the assets is his “white gold emerald cut engagement ring with small accent diamonds”.
The other forfeited assets are two cars at home in Nigeria and N280.555.010, which equates to about $ 700,000 that the Nigerian government confiscated from him.
Fraud
US authorities said Mr. Okeke and his co-conspirators, who remain at large, were involved “through deception and impersonation” in a multi-year global email and computer hacking program that caused its victims a staggering US $ 11 million loss Dollar caused.
Mr. Okeke, 31, also known as Invictus Obi, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in a case last June.
His guilty guilty guilty guilty guilty guilty admission, which helped him to drop one of the two charges originally brought against him, allowed for a restitution and confiscation of his confiscated property.
Condemnation
On Thursday, PREMIUM TIMES only received the “restitution order” and the “confiscation order” from the court, which are part of the judgment documents signed by the judge and the parties to the proceedings.
In addition to the judge, the Acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Raj Parekh, Mr. Okeke and his defense attorney John Iweanoge are other signatories of the two documents.
Making amends to three victims
“Pursuant to 18 USC Section 3663A (a) (1), the defendant is sentenced to pay a total of $ 10,679,166.54 in damages jointly and severally with all other defendants who were sentenced to pay the same losses,” the statement reads Provision order partially.
Attached to the document is a list of three victims of Mr Okeke’s fraud.
They are: Unatrac Holdings LLC of Washington DC, which was fooled $ 5,429,166.54; Orient Insurance PJSC, which defrauded $ 5 million, and QBE European Operations, which lost $ 250,000 to the fraudsters.
The court ordered that all reparation payments “to be made to the bailiff” “distribute the funds to Unatrac first and proportionately to the remaining victims.”
The court waived interest on the amount to be repaid by the convict and ordered that “no penalties for default or default will be imposed, except as directed by the court.”
Collection order
In the order to withdraw consent, the judge issued a monetary judgment arresting a total of $ 10,679,166.54 to be repaid by Mr. Okeke.
This means that US authorities will be able to enforce the order as the final judgment of the court on the forfeiture of assets that Mr Okeke has an interest in in order to raise the money for the refund.
According to the court, the sum “constitutes a monetary judgment against the defendant in favor of the United States” and “will be set off” upon final forfeiture and liquidation of all of Mr. Okeke’s confiscated assets.
Some of Mr. Okeke’s assets that have already been ordered for confiscation in the document are “18-carat emerald-cut white gold engagement ring with small accent diamonds and GIA number 2287567161”.
“This ring was removed from the defendant when he was arrested,” the document says.
The court also ordered the US government to be confiscated: “Approximately 280,555,010 Nigerian naira (approximately US $ 700,000) were confiscated from the defendant by the Nigerian authorities in light of his arrest in this case.
“Proceeds from the sale of the Defendant’s 2018 Toyota Camry and 2017 Toyota Hilux.”
It added, “The defendant agrees to sell these two vehicles in Nigeria and transfer the proceeds to the US Marshals Service.
“Defendant must transfer these proceeds to the US Marshals Service within six months of the date of this order, unless the defendant is extended by written agreement with the government.
“The United States seizes all deteriorated property and has complete and exclusive custody and control over it.”
US assets also expire
The document also contained a notice, without specifying any details, that Mr. Okeke may have assets in the United States that could be taken over by government agencies in the enforcement of the court’s monetary judgment.
“In relation to the monetary judgment described in paragraph (1) (a) above, the United States may recover that monetary judgment by any and all means lawfully available, including, but not limited to, the confiscation of direct proceeds and substitute assets.
“To the extent that the United States requests the confiscation of replacement assets, the defendant agrees and the court determines that one or more of the criteria listed in 21 USC §853 (p) (1) are met and the United States can therefore apply for confiscation Substitute assets according to § 853 (p). “
However, the court ordered that in the enforcement of the confiscation order for such assets in the United States “if practicable, any person known to have claimed an interest in the confiscated property should be notified directly in writing and so released”. Order in accordance with Federal Criminal Procedure Code 32.2 (b) (6). “
The court added that anyone other than Mr. Okeke who has a legal interest in the property “can request a hearing within 30 days of the notice being posted or the notice being received, whichever is earlier,” to judge the validity ”. their alleged interest in the property. “
It also ordered: “After the court has decided on all petitions filed on time, a final forfeiture will be ordered. If no third party submits a timely application, this order becomes the final forfeiture order, as provided in the Federal Criminal Procedure Code 32.2 (c) (2), and the
The United States has clear ownership of the property and controls the property in accordance with the law. “
profile
Mr. Okeke is the founder of Invictus Group, which he claimed has business interests in oil and gas, agriculture, and real estate, among others.
He is said to have a degree in International Studies and Forensic Criminology and a Masters of International Relations and Counter-Terrorism Studies from Monash University in Australia
Mr. Okeke, a businessman with an international reputation, was featured on the cover of Forbes Africa Magazine in June 2016.
arrest
He was arrested on August 6, 2019 on charges of computer and wire transfer fraud investigating the fraud of Unatrac Holding Limited, based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
employee of Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) picked him up at Dulles International Airport in Virginia as he was preparing to leave the United States after visiting to witness the birth of his 19-month-old daughter, who was born on July 15, 2019.
Calculated
On September 9, 2019, he was charged with two charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit computer fraud.
Mr. Okeke, who initially denied the allegations, later entered into a plea agreement agreement with the US authorities and pleaded guilty to Indictment 1 on June 18, 2020.
The admission of guilt helped Mr. Okeke obtain the retraction of the second charge, which includes a lesser sentence and fines.
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