internet fraud – Memphis Flyer

Two Texas men were found guilty Tuesday of scamming the city of Memphis out of nearly $774,000 in 2022.

A federal jury found Stanley Anyanwu, 41, and Vitalis Anyanwu, 42, guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to Interim United States Attorney Joseph C. Murphy.

The city fell victim to a business email compromise scam causing a legitimate payment of $773,695.45 to go not to the intended contractor recipient but to a bank account controlled by a sophisticated fraud conspiracy. The city realized what had happened within days but was unable to recover the funds because the conspiracy had already swept the funds away into a large money laundering network.

The FBI investigated and identified Stanley and Vitalis Anyanwu as two members of the conspiracy. During the investigation, the FBI also identified victims of romance scams who had been taken advantage of by the same conspiracy. The defendants’ primary role in the conspiracy was to act as knowing “money mules” for internet-based fraud scams.

A business email compromise scam is a type of computer intrusion that occurs when an employee of a business or similar entity is fooled into interacting with an email message that appears to be, but is not, legitimate. The email message usually contains either malware or fraudulent misrepresentations. The purpose of the intrusion is usually to access sensitive information or to defraud the victim entity.

A romance scam is a type of advance fee scam in which the operator of the scam uses the internet and social media platforms to target potential victims who are seeking friends or romantic companionship. The scammer hides his or her true identity by posing as a potential friend or romantic partner and entering into an online relationship with the victim.

Eventually, the scammer begins to ask for emergency financial assistance of some kind. If the victim sends money, the scammer will present an escalating series of events and false claims necessitating increasingly larger amounts of money.

A money mule is someone who knowingly or unknowingly transfers or moves fraudulently acquired money on behalf of someone else. Money mules are important parts of fraud conspiracies because, among other reasons, they provide the conspiracy with a way to disguise the criminal origins of fraud proceeds.

“These defendants defrauded multiple individuals and entities resulting in a significant loss to the city of Memphis,” said Special Agent in Charge Joseph E. Carrico of the FBI Nashville Field Office. “The FBI and our partners are committed to holding accountable those who seek to line their own pockets through business email compromise, romance, and money laundering schemes, and will continue to work tirelessly to investigate those who engage in criminal activity resulting in financial harm to members of our community.”

Sentencing is set for July 18, 2025 before Chief United States District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman.

Two internet fraudsters were convicted Tuesday in federal court for an international conspiracy that included hacking, romance fraud, and stealing a Memphis woman’s home payment.

Married couple Caesar Oruade, 38, and Ayana Saunders, 36, of Hawthorne, California, were convicted of wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to launder money in a Memphis federal court Tuesday.

The conviction stems from a 2017 computer hack of a real estate firm in which the couple stole $76,000 from a Memphis woman and diverted the funds to a California bank account.

Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) followed the money and found it had been sent to a number of other U.S. bank accounts before being wired to to an account in Nigeria. Other victims across the U.S. and Canada said they were similarly victimized by the scheme in attempts to purchase real estate.

Bank accounts belonging to Saunders were generally the last domestic stop for the funds before landing in the Nigerian account of Oruade. The couple said the money came from investors, funding Nigerian films through their production company.

The couple’s schemes also included romance fraud. In these, a criminal adopts a fake online identity to gain a victim’s affection and trust only to, ultimately, use it to steal their money. Victims from across the U.S. and Canada testified they’d fallen victim to the con, directed to send money to an online love interest of friend as insurance on a pending loan or to help their “friend” in an emergency.

For all of their schemes, more than $500,000 flowed through Saunders’ bank account. She would take a cut and forward the rest to Nigeria, according to officials.

The pair were convicted of wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to launder money. Each conviction carries a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison. Sentencing is set for July 21^st.

“Targeting domestic and foreign fraudsters who scam innocent people out of their hard-earned money is a priority for the FBI,” said Douglas Korneski, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Memphis Field Office. “These convictions demonstrate the effectiveness of state and federal law enforcement working together to protect the public from real estate and romance scammers and bring those responsible to justice.”

Investigation assistance on the case was given by the United States Secret Service and the Los Angeles Division of the FBI, and the Los Angeles Police Department.