A U.S. District Court has sentenced Nosayamen Iyalekhue, a 33-year-old Nigerian,  to a five years and three months term in jail for internet scam.

Judge Rya W. Zobel convicted Mr. Iyalekhue for crimes ranging from romance scam to pandemic unemployment insurance scam, amongst others.

Court document detailed how Mr. Iyalekhue alongside his accomplice, Esogie Osawaru, participated in a series of online scam defrauding innocent citizens of their hard-earned income.

According to a statement by the U.S. Department of Justice on Friday, Mr. Iyalekhue and his accomplice used a false foreign passport carrying their photos to open numerous bank accounts.

They asked their victims to send money into those accounts which they rapidly withdraw from various bank branches and ATMs, in multiple transactions daily.

“Iyalekhue and Osawaru participated in a series of romance, pandemic unemployment insurance, and other online scams designed to defraud victims by convincing them to send money to accounts controlled by the defendants,” the statement by the U.S. department of justice read.

It added, “To carry out the scams, the defendants used false foreign passports in the names of others, but with their own photos, to open numerous bank accounts, and in turn directed the victims to send money to these accounts. Iyalekhue and Osawaru then rapidly withdrew the victims’ money from various bank branches and ATMs, often multiple times during a single day.”

The justice department disclosed that the activities of Mr. Iyalekhue will be closely monitored for three years, on the expiration of his jail term

In November 2019, Mr. Iyalekhue pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and was arrested alongside Mr. Osawaru, his co-defendant in June 2020.

Mr. Osawaru who also pleaded guilty in November 2020 will be sentenced on June 24, 2021.