- Nigerian man Yomi Olayeye arrested in the US for allegedly defrauding $10 million in COVID-19 unemployment benefits using stolen identities
- Olayeye faces multiple charges, including wire fraud and identity theft, and could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted
A Nigerian man, Yomi Olayeye, has been arrested in the United States for his alleged involvement in a $10 million COVID-19 unemployment assistance fraud scheme. Olayeye, apprehended on August 13 upon arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, faces charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and identity theft.
The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced Olayeye’s arrest, stating that he and others “conspired to fraudulently obtain at least $10 million in COVID-19 unemployment benefits.”
Olayeye, also known as “Sabbie,” is 40 years old and hails from Lagos, Nigeria. He has been charged with one count each of wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. After his initial court appearance in the Eastern District of New York on August 14, 2024, he is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boston on Tuesday.
According to the statement, Olayeye and his co-conspirators targeted three pandemic assistance programs administered by the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance and other states’ unemployment insurance agencies: traditional unemployment insurance (UI), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC). They allegedly used stolen personal information to apply for unemployment benefits in multiple states, including Massachusetts, Hawaii, and Indiana.
In total, they are accused of filing for at least $10 million in fraudulent unemployment benefits across several states and receiving over $1.5 million in payments to which they were not entitled. The scheme used personally identifiable information (PII) purchased from criminal internet forums to falsely represent themselves as eligible state residents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fraudulently obtained PII was also used to open US bank and prepaid debit card accounts to receive the illicit payments. Additionally, Olayeye and his co-conspirators allegedly recruited US-based account holders to assist in transferring the fraud proceeds through cash transfer applications. The fraudulent funds were then used to purchase Bitcoin via online marketplaces, and the conspirators attempted to conceal their connections to Nigeria by using US-based IP addresses.
If convicted, Olayeye faces up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, as well as potential forfeiture and restitution.
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