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Nigerian Man Arrested Over Alleged $10m COVID-19 Aid Fraud In US—-A Nigerian national, Yomi Olayeye, has been arrested for his alleged involvement in a $10 million COVID-19 unemployment assistance fraud scheme in the United States.

Olayeye, also known as “Sabbie,” was taken into custody on August 13, 2024, upon his arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, under the Department of Justice, announced that Olayeye, 40, is facing charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

According to a statement released by the office, Olayeye and his co-conspirators are accused of fraudulently obtaining at least $10 million in unemployment benefits intended for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The scheme allegedly involved using stolen personal information to file for unemployment benefits across several states, including Massachusetts, Hawaii, and Indiana. The fraudulent claims targeted three pandemic assistance programs: traditional unemployment insurance (UI), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC).

Olayeye and his co-conspirators reportedly applied for at least $10 million in fraudulent benefits across multiple states and successfully received over $1.5 million. The indictment claims that they used stolen personally identifiable information (PII) purchased from criminal internet forums to apply for the benefits, posing as eligible residents impacted by the pandemic.

The scheme involved opening U.S. bank and prepaid debit card accounts using the fraudulently obtained PII to receive the benefits. Olayeye and his associates also allegedly recruited U.S.-based account holders to transfer the illicit proceeds via cash transfer applications.

The fraudulent proceeds were then used to purchase Bitcoin through online marketplaces, with efforts made to conceal their connection to Nigeria by using U.S.-based IP addresses.

Olayeye made his initial court appearance on August 14 in the Eastern District of New York and is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boston. If convicted, he faces a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain or loss, forfeiture, and restitution.

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JUST IN: Minister Adebayo Adelabu WhatsApp Number Hacked [DETAILS]

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Minister Adebayo

•Minister Of Power, Adebayo Adelabu WhatsApp Number has been Hacked.

THECLOUDNGR The WhatsApp number of Nigeria’s Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has reportedly been hacked, prompting a warning from his spokesperson, Bolaji Tunji.

The announcement was made in a brief notice sent to the Daily Post by Tunji on Thursday night.

Tunji urged Nigerians to ignore any requests for money or financial assistance originating from the compromised phone number, stating, “HM of power number has been hacked on WhatsApp. Kindly disregard any appeal for money or any assistance for financial support through the number 08022901928.”

This incident follows closely on the heels of similar security breaches involving other government officials.

Just six days prior, the WhatsApp number of the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, was hacked, and earlier, the same fate befell the Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Enoh.

TCN recalls that the WhatsApp number of the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Umo Eno, in August was also hacked by fraudsters, leading to an attempt to defraud several of his contacts.

The incident came to light when some individuals on the governor’s contact list received messages from his WhatsApp number, requesting that money be sent to a specified account with a promise of a refund later.

In a related incident, Osun State Government, in July issued a public alert on the security breach of Governor Ademola Adeleke‘s official telephone number.

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Bobrisky: Why I Didn’t File Suit Against VeryDarkMan – Falana

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Bobrisky: Why I Didn’t File Suit Against VeryDarkManFalana—-Prominent human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has revealed that he is resisting the urge to file criminal charges against a blogger, Martins Otse, who is better known as VeryDarkMan.

The blogger had recently published an audio clip accusing Falana of helping cross-dresser Idris Okuneye, popularly known as Bobrisky, secure a pardon.

Falana clarified that he has no connection with Bobrisky.

Speaking for the first time since the audio surfaced, Falana addressed the situation, stating that VeryDarkMan released a recording of a supposed conversation between Bobrisky and an unidentified person. In the clip, Bobrisky allegedly claimed to have bribed officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with ₦15 million to drop a money laundering case against him.

The recording also suggested that Bobrisky reached out to Falana’s son, Folarin (Falz), seeking his father’s influence to obtain a presidential pardon, with a demand for ₦10 million.

The House of Representatives is currently investigating the allegations, and the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has established an independent panel to look into the accusations against officers of the Nigerian Correctional Service.

Appearing on Channels TV’s Politics Today, Falana criticized the audio, stating that he would have pursued legal action if not for his ongoing advocacy for the decriminalization of free speech.

Falana remarked, “Bobrisky never spoke to me. I’ve never met him. I don’t know him from Adam. He was alleged to have spoken to my son, Folarin (Falz).” He continued by explaining that his son did receive a call from Bobrisky on May 4, requesting financial assistance to secure a placement in a VIP section of the prison. Falz, however, refused to engage, asking Bobrisky to only make requests through official prison channels.

Falana added, “We are going to examine the call logs… My son has never negotiated fees on behalf of anyone.”

The senior lawyer emphasized that although he had the opportunity to file a criminal case, he chose not to, given his role in a broader campaign across West Africa aimed at decriminalizing freedom of expression.

“This campaign is being coordinated by the Media Foundation for West Africa, where I’m a board member… We have succeeded in getting Liberia, Ghana, and Sierra Leone to decriminalize free expression. We are appealing to other countries to follow suit.”

He cautioned, however, that freedom of expression does not justify defamation or blackmail, and expressed his intent to take civil action if an acceptable apology is not offered.

Falana concluded, “We have asked for a retraction and an apology… If we don’t receive them, we will initiate civil proceedings in the High Court.”

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