Federal Judge Orders Prison Sentences in Celebrity Romance Scam

Three people were sentenced for roles in a romance scam that targeted victims nationwide and resulted in the death of one elderly victim.

Salma Abdalkareem, 29 of Piscataway, New Jersey, Chinagorom Onwumere, 36, of Piscataway, New Jersey, and Stephen O. Anagor, 37, of Lakewood, Washington, were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Clifton L. Corker in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.

Judge Corker sentenced Abdalkareem to 51 months, Onwumere to 84 months, and Anagor to 108 months. Following their imprisonment, Onwumere and Anagor will be on supervised release for five years, and Abdalkareem will be on supervised release for three years. All will be required to repay the victims $388,500 in restitution.

As part of written plea agreements filed with the court, Abdalkareem pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Onwumere pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting aggravated stalking resulting in death, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering, and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Abdalkareem pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting money laundering, and one count of aiding and abetting money laundering. Anagor pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of aiding and abetting aggravated stalking resulting in death, and one count of aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft.

According to filed court documents, Anagor and Onwumere (both from Nigeria) met during military training in South Carolina in June 2023. Anagor recruited Onwumere and Onwumere’s wife, Abdalkareem (a citizen of Sudan), to assist a relative in Nigeria in carrying out romance scams perpetrated on victims around the United States. (Read more from “Federal Judge Orders Prison Sentences in Celebrity Romance Scam” HERE)

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