On November 18, 2022, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) announced charges against ten defendants for their involvement in multiple business email compromise (BEC), money laundering, and wire fraud schemes that targeted Medicare, state Medicaid programs, private health insurers, and other victims, resulting in more than $11.1 million in losses.
The charges largely involve schemes where individuals allegedly pose as business partners and fraudulently divert money from the victims’ bank accounts into accounts that they or their co-conspirators controlled. In these schemes, the individuals used spoofed email addresses, bank account takeovers, and other fraudulent methods meant to deceive victims into believe they were making legitimate payments.
Some of the activities included fraudulent emails from accounts resembling accounts from hospitals were sent to public and private health insurance programs requesting that future reimbursements be sent to bank accounts that did not belong to the hospitals. Five state Medicaid programs, two Medicare Administrative Contractors, and two private health insurers were allegedly deceived into making payments to those incorrect bank accounts instead of bank accounts that belonged to the hospitals.
The defendants and the co-conspirators then allegedly laundered the proceeds by withdrawing large amounts of cash, layering them through other accounts they (or the co-conspirators) opened in the names of false and/or stolen identities and shell companies, transferring them overseas, and purchasing luxury goods and exotic automobiles.
Specific Charges
Nine of the defendants have only been charged, while one has already pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and use of a false passport. That defendant, Adewale Adesanya, allegedly used a false passport under the name “Timi Graig” to create a shell company to open bank accounts to receive and launder more than $1.5 million from the schemes (and others).
Sauveur Blanchard Jr. was charged by indictment in September 2021 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and four substantive money laundering offenses. Blanchard allegedly opened bank accounts in the names of various shell companies to receive and launder more than $55,000 in Medicaid payments intended for a hospital.
Malachi Mullings was charged in February 2022 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and seven substantive money laundering offenses. Mullings allegedly used bank accounts opened in the name of a shell company (The Mullings Group LLC) to receive and launder millions of dollars from these schemes.
Trion Thomas was charged by information in September 2022 with conspiracy to commit money laundering. Thomas allegedly received and laundered $93,000 of Medicare payments.
Biliamin Fagbewesa was charged by indictment in November 2022 with three counts of money laundering and one count of unlawful procurement of naturalization. Fagbewesa allegedly used a stolen identity to open bank accounts in the name of a shell company to receive more than $1.4 million of fraudulently diverted proceeds intended for a state Medicaid program, a hospital, and others.
Olugbenga Abu was charged by indictment with one count of bank fraud, one count of wire fraud, and four counts of money laundering. Aby allegedly used a false identity to open a bank account that received and laundered fraud proceeds, as well as obtaining fraudulent loans in excess of $400,000 from the Small Business Administration.
Chisom Okonkwo was charged by indictment with three counts of wire fraud, two counts of aggravated identity theft, and six counts of money laundering. Okonkwo allegedly used stolen and false identities to open accounts in the names of shell companies that received approximately $830,000 in proceeds from BEC fraud and other similar schemes. Okonkwo allegedly also paid for a luxury car through a fraudulent loan she obtained in the name of a stolen identity.
Cory Smith was charged by indictment with three counts of money laundering. Smith allegedly opened a bank account using a false identity and used the account to receive and launder more than $57,000 through a BEC scheme.
Desmond Nkwenya was charged by indictment with two counts of money laundering and one count of bank fraud. Nkwenya allegedly used false identifies and shell companies to open bank accounts and receive more than $300,000 through BEC fraud and similar schemes. Nkwenya also allegedly received $119,000 from a fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program loan application.
Patrick Ndong-Bike was charged by indictment with four counts of money laundering. Ndong-Bike allegedly used false identifies and shell companies to receive more than $2.4 million of proceeds of BEC fraud and similar schemes. Ndong-Bike allegedly laundered and spent $679,000 of that money.