TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Three men were sentenced for their respective roles in a Ghana-based romance scam and ordered to pay $581,261.67 each in restitution to their victims following a joint Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Tallahassee investigation.
“Targeting the elderly for financial gain is morally reprehensible,” said HSI Tallahassee Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nicholas Ingegno. “Protecting this vulnerable population is not just the responsibility of family members, but also law enforcement agencies like HSI and our partners. We are committed to apprehending those who target our seniors.”
Sadia Alhassan, 35, a citizen of Ghana who resided in Tallahassee, was sentenced to serve 18 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, after previously pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and one count of operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Shawn William Smith, 26, of Tallahassee, was sentenced to serve one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and 150 hours of community service. He previously plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and one count of operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Mohammed Saaminu Zuberu, 39, of Aldie, Va., a citizen of Ghana who was naturalized as a dual U.S. citizen, was sentenced to serve approximately five-and-a-half months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He previously plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and one count of operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.
“Given our large elder population, Florida experiences far too many instances of fraud against unsuspecting, vulnerable seniors through overtures of affection,” said U.S. Attorney Jason Coody, Northern District of Florida. “With the assistance of our dedicated law enforcement partners, we are committed to investigating and vigorously prosecuting those who seek to steal the hard-earned savings of our senior citizens.”
“Whether you are spearheading the scheme or acting as a “money-mule,” there is no tolerance for those who are knowingly involved with defrauding citizens throughout the United States in a romance scam,” said Juan A. Vargas, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division. “U.S. Postal Inspection Service, along with our law enforcement partners, will continue to investigate those who target innocent people, especially our elderly, and use the U.S. Mail to abuse their trust for financial gain.”
Court documents reflect between March 2019, and March 2022, unknown individuals in Ghana engaged in a military romance scam in which they used telephone and online platforms to contact (usually) elderly victims in the United States and trick them into believing that they were involved in a romantic relationship with another person. Eventually through continued communications, the victims were duped into sending money to their supposed romantic partner (who they had never actually met in person). Sadia Alhassan, who was in the United States on a student visa, and her husband, Shawn Smith, knowingly served as money launderers (also known as “money mules”) for the unknown scammers in Ghana. Smith and Alhassan did not have any direct communications with the scam victims; rather, the victims were instructed by the “romantic partner” to send money via the United States Postal Service or a commercial interstate carrier to an address in Tallahassee which turned out to be used by Smith and Alhassan, or to bank accounts that they controlled.
Court records also show that Mohammed Zuberu served as an intermediary between Smith and Alhassan and the unknown Ghana scammers. On at least one occasion, Zuberu sent a screenshot of USPS receipt (including the tracking number of a package en route to Smith and Alhassan) to Alhassan via a social media phone application. The receipt was consistent with having been sent from one of the elderly victims to a “romantic partner” during their communications. Once Smith and Alhassan received the package in Tallahassee, Alhassan sent a photo of the received package back to Zuberu to alert the scammers that the fraud money was received. The money contained in such packages were then used, in part, to buy money orders which were deposited into bank accounts of Zuberu and others. Within a few days of being deposited in Zuberu’s account, the money was usually withdrawn at ATMs located in Ghana.
“I want to remind everyone to be extremely careful when sending money to someone you barely know,” said Ron Loecker, Special Agent in charge of IRS – Criminal Investigation’s Tampa Field Office. “These manipulators preyed on the good nature of their elderly victims, plain and simple. We all have a desire to feel close to someone and this group sought to exploit that for their own greed. We will continue to do everything we can to bring the criminals who run these types of scams to justice.”
Court records also reflect that the defendants used and operated multiple registered and unregistered business entities to transfer funds on behalf of the public without an appropriate money transmitting businesses license as required by Florida law. Further, the defendants operated such money transmitting businesses knowing that the funds being transported and transmitted were derived from a criminal offense or were intended to be used to promote or support unlawful activity. As a result of their conduct, Smith, Alhassan, Zuberu, and others fraudulently received more than approximately $500,000 to which they were not entitled. These convictions were the result of a joint investigation by HSI Tallahassee, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Florida Highway Patrol. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin M. Keen.
To report any information about financial or romance scams, contact the HSI Tip Line at 1-877-4-HSI-TIP.
HSI Tampa area of responsibility, which includes ten geographically strategic offices, covers more than 51,600 square miles of the total 65,757 square miles in the state of Florida. This AOR is inhabited by more than 14.2 million people and includes 58 of the 67 counties. HSI Tampa also includes five of the ten largest cities in Florida, 15 primary commercial service airports, and 11 seaports.
Learn more about HSI Tampa’s mission to increase public safety in Florida communities on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @HSITampa.