FBI Arrests Nigerian Man Over Alleged Multi-million Dollar COVID-19 Scheme Fraud

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested Jones “Sabbie” Olayeye, a 40-year-old Nigerian upon his arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

Olayeye faces charges related to an alleged scheme to defraud U.S. unemployment benefits programs of millions of dollars during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced Olayeye’s arrest on August 13, following his arrival from Nigeria. He has been transferred from the Eastern District of New York to the District of Massachusetts, where he will face further court proceedings. Olayeye, along with an unnamed co-conspiratorl who is at large, was indicted in September 2020 on charges of wire fraud conspiracy and aggravated identity theft.

Prosecutors alleged that between March and July 2020, Olayeye and his accomplice filed fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits under various U.S. programs, including Traditional Unemployment Assistance (UI), Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA), and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC). The claims were filed in multiple states, including Massachusetts, Hawaii, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Montana, Maine, Ohio, and Washington.

According to the indictment, Olayeye and his co-defendant used personally identifiable information (PII) obtained from criminal internet forums to pose as eligible U.S. residents and apply for pandemic relief. The fraudsters allegedly used the information to open bank accounts and prepaid debit cards to receive the illicit payments. The indictment further alleged that the conspirators engaged individuals in the U.S. with bank accounts, referred to as “clients,” to receive the fraudulent funds and wire the money to Nigeria. To obscure their connection to Nigeria, the group rented space on a U.S. server to file the claims.

In a letter dated August 14 to a U.S. magistrate in Brooklyn, the U.S. Attorney’s Office noted that Olayeye’s co-defendant was still at large. The letter also detailed the measures taken by Olayeye and his accomplice to carry out the fraud and their attempts to cover their tracks.

“The evidence against the defendant is also particularly compelling,” stated Breon Peace, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, in the “flight risk” letter to the court. “The government intends to prove the defendant’s guilt at trial using, among other things, the contents of his own e-mail and other social media accounts, which establish both his connections to his co-defendant and his control of significant quantities of PII tied to pandemic and other species of fraud.”

Prosecutors argued against granting bail, citing Olayeye’s history of dishonesty with U.S. authorities, including a previous denial of a non-immigrant visa in 2017 and false statements on his current visa application. “His lack of candor with U.S. authorities undercuts any suggestion that he would be truthful with the United States Probation and Pretrial Services Office tasked with supervising his conditions of release,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated.

On August 20, a federal judge in Brooklyn ordered Olayeye to be transferred to the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island while awaiting trial in Boston. If convicted, Olayeye faces up to 20 years in prison on each count of wire fraud and conspiracy, in addition to a mandatory minimum sentence of two years for aggravated identity theft. The court could also impose fines, forfeiture of illicit gains, and restitution to victims.

The case is part of the broader effort by the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, established by the U.S. Attorney General in May 2021 to combat pandemic-related fraud. The Department of Justice (DOJ) encouraged anyone with information about potential fraud to visit its National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) website and fill out a complaint form.