A Nigerian man has been declared wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Philadelphia, for defrauding the New York state.
The Twitter post on the FBI Philadelphia official handle read, “Chidozie Collins Obasi of Nigeria is wanted for defrauding N.Y. State out of more than $30 million.”
The 29-year-old Nigerian is indicted with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, six counts of mail fraud, and 16 counts of wire fraud.
Chidozie allegedly targeted Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic with a fraud scheme through a spam email campaign offering illegitimate “work from home” jobs.
FBI website stated that in March 2020, Chidozie targeted U.S. hospitals and medical systems by offering non-existent ventilators for sale.
In June 2020, he resorted to using the stolen identity information of American citizens to apply for and obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans (“EID Loans”).
The statement partly read, “The Indictment alleges that Obasi perpetrated this fraud from Nigeria, with the help of co-conspirators in Canada and elsewhere.
“The defendant and his co-conspirators are alleged to have obtained more than $31,000,000 through this multi-faceted fraud scheme, with the overwhelming majority of that money – more than $30 million – coming from the State of New York for the intended purchase of ventilators.”