Special to the Journal
A Lynn man pleaded guilty in connection with his involvement in a scheme to defraud several financial institutions and obtain money from their customers using fraudulent identification documents.
Emeka Iloba, 27, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin scheduled sentencing for Dec. 16, 2021. Iloba was charged with an alleged co-conspirator on March 15, 2021.
As stated during the plea hearing, Iloba participated in and at times directed a scheme to defraud financial institutions. To carry out the scheme, Iloba and others used fraudulent identification documents, among other means, to withdraw money from customers’ accounts at various banks in the form of checks, cash and wire transfers. The fraudulently-obtained funds were then deposited in other bank accounts opened in the names of fictitious business entities before being withdrawn. According to the charging documents, this scheme resulted in over $1.5 million in losses between April 2017 and March 2018.
The charge of conspiracy to commit bank fraud provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, up to five years of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory sentence of two years in prison to be served consecutively to any other sentenced imposed, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell and Joseph R. Bonavolanta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leslie A. Wright and Christopher J. Markham of Mendell’s Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit are prosecuting the case.