A 57-year-old Nigerian, Uche Victor Diuno, has been sentenced to five years in prison by a United States District Court for his involvement in a fraudulent scheme targeting victims across more than 20 countries.
The announcement was made in a statement released on the website of the US Justice Ministry on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, with plans for Diuno’s deportation following the completion of his prison term.
According to the Ministry, Diuno played a key role in a scam where fraudsters abroad enticed victims with false promises of substantial investment funding and inheritances. The scheme involved co-conspirators posing as executives and employees of leading US banks to deceive victims into making payments for purported investment and money transfer agreements. Subsequently, these payments were laundered through US bank accounts and directed back to the scheme’s leaders in Nigeria.
Diuno admitted to using multiple aliases to convince victims of the scam’s authenticity and confessed to his involvement in laundering victim funds. Acting on instructions from the scheme’s leader, Diuno directed a co-conspirator to disburse victim funds upon receipt. The fraudulent activities orchestrated by Diuno and his co-conspirators led to losses of nearly $5.7 million from October 2014 to September 2018.
In February 2024, Diuno pleaded guilty to fraud-related charges. During the court proceedings, he expressed regret for his actions and acknowledged the significant financial and emotional harm caused to victims of the scheme. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted the investigation, with FBI Houston Special Agent Douglas Williams emphasizing the elaborate nature of the fraud.
Assistant US Attorney Christian Latham and Trial Attorney Philip Trout urged the court to convict Diuno, leading to a judgment by US District Judge Alfred H. Bennett. Judge Bennett observed that Diuno played a significant role in the multi-million dollar fraud and subsequently ordered him to serve 60 months in federal prison and pay $5,693,648 in restitution.
Reacting to the sentencing, US Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani affirmed the commitment of authorities to track down perpetrators of crimes. Hamdani highlighted Diuno’s involvement in a global operation that defrauded victims across multiple continents, resulting in significant financial losses. Diuno will remain in custody pending transfer to a US Bureau of Prisons facility.
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