US indicts Nigerian national for using romance scams to defraud government agency of more than $300,000

A 45-year-old Nigerian national, Okeoghene Patrick Udugba, has been indicted on federal charges accusing him of helping orchestrate a romance scam and business email fraud scheme that allegedly defrauded the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of more than $300,000.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced this in a press release issued by the Department of Justice on Wednesday, July 22, 2026.

According to the statement, Udugba, of Frisco, Texas, was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud. 

United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, said the indictment alleges that Udugba and others orchestrated overlapping romance and business email compromise schemes.

As part of the scheme, Udugba and others utilized social media and dating websites to meet and establish purported romantic relationships with persons in multiple states. 

Those persons were groomed and ultimately used by Udugba and others as money mules to receive and cash fraudulently obtained checks. 

To obtain the checks, members of the conspiracy sent emails from “spoofed” addresses in Nigeria, claiming to be representatives of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). 

The spoofed emails directed that FWS grant funds be used to pay fabricated invoices, which falsely represented that the money mules were contractors and consultants of FWS who had performed work on grant-eligible projects. 

As a result of the fraudulent emails and invoices, FWS’s grant administrator issued payments in excess of $300,000.   

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and Department of Interior Office of Inspector General investigated the case. 

Assistant United States Attorney Sarah R. Lloyd is prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. 

The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. 

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 30 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.

A sentence following the finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.