Prince Boateng Adjei, a 31-year-old resident of Lawrenceville, Georgia, has confessed to engaging in wire fraud that resulted in the theft of over $1 million from a business located in Gilmer County, West Virginia.
Court documents and statements revealed that Adjei collaborated with another defendant, Chisom Okonkwo, to execute a business email compromise scheme. They impersonated an employee of the Gilmer County business through email spoofing. This fraudulent activity led an unsuspecting individual to transfer more than $1 million into a bank account managed by the defendants. Before their scheme was uncovered, Adjei and Okonkwo had already spent over $600,000 of the illicitly obtained funds.
Earlier this month, Okonkwo admitted guilt and awaits sentencing. In his plea agreement, Adjei consented to repay $610,146.03 in restitution and faces a potential prison sentence of up to 20 years. The final sentence will be determined by a federal district court judge after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other relevant statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas is handling the prosecution for the government. The investigation was conducted by the United States Secret Service under the supervision of U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael John Aloi.
