Man Lured Victims Into Fake Romantic Relationships For Money: Attorney's Office

GREENBELT, MD — A former Prince George's County man was convicted for luring victims into fake romantic relationships and then bilking them out of millions of dollars. Adeyinka Awolaja, 35, formerly of New Carrollton, was sentenced Thursday to three years of probation, including two years of home confinement.

Awolaja, who now lives in Chicago, was convicted with co-conspirator Olusola Olla, 50, of North Carolina. Four other Prince George's County residents were convicted for the fraud Nov. 18, 2016.

Prosecutors say Awolaja and the others were members of a conspiracy to search online dating websites to initiate romantic relationships with "vulnerable male and female individuals," according to a statement from the Justice Department.

The culprits phoned, emailed, texted and used internet chat messenger services to form romantic relationships with the victims, who lived in Maryland and around the country. Witnesses testified that members of the conspiracy used fake stories and promises to convince victims to give them money.

The victims said the suspects convinced them to give them money for fake hospital bills, plane trips to visit the victims and problems with overseas businesses.

>> See Related: 4 PG County Scammers Convicted of Luring Victims into Fake Romantic Relationships

Olla and co-conspirators opened bank accounts, called “drop accounts,” to receive millions of dollars from victims, with payments ranging from $1,720 to $50,000.

"Olla, Awolaja and the co-conspirators dispersed money received from the victims by transferring funds to other accounts they controlled, by obtaining cashier’s checks, and by writing checks to individuals or entities, all done to conceal the nature, source, and control of those assets," the statement from the Justice Department reads.

A federal jury convicted the following defendants on Nov. 18 for conspiracies to commit wire fraud and money laundering: 58-year-old Gbenga Benson Ogundele of Laurel, Md.; 42-year-old Victor Oyewumi Oloyede of Laurel; 34-year-old Babtunde Emmanuel Popoola of Bowie, Md.; and 42-year-old Mojisola Tinuola Popoola of Laurel.

Patch File Photo