LOS ANGELES — A Nigerian man called an “international fraudster” by prosecutors after he laundered millions of dollars through several online scams -- and then bragged about his lifestyle on social media-- was sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, 40, of Nigeria, who is also known by his Instagram handle of “Ray Hushpuppi,” was sentenced to 135 months in prison on Monday.
U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II also ordered Abbas to pay $1,732,841 in restitution to two fraud victims, according to the news release.
Nigerian Man Sentenced to More Than 11 Years in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Launder Tens of Millions of Dollars from Online Scams: Ramon Olorunwa Abbas, a prolific international fraudster who conspired to launder tens of millions of dollars, was se... https://t.co/Q8XDsYKbWq
— FBI Los Angeles (@FBILosAngeles) November 8, 2022
Abbas was “one of the most prolific money launderers in the world,” Don Alway, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, said in a statement.
Abbas pleaded guilty in April 2021 to one count of conspiracy to engage in money laundering. He was arrested in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, in June 2020, prosecutors said.
According to prosecutors, Abbas and Ghaleb Alaumary, 37, of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, laundered money from various online crimes -- including bank cyberheists and business email compromise.
In January 2019, prosecutors said Abbas conspired with Alaumary to launder funds stolen from a bank in Malta by providing account information for banks in Romania and Bulgaria. Abbas admitted that the intended loss to the Maltese bank was approximately $14.7 million, according to The Associated Press.
Four months later, prosecutors said Abbas conspired with Alaumary to launder millions of pounds stolen from a professional soccer club in the United Kingdom and a British company. Abbas also fraudulently induced a New York-based law firm in October 2019 to transfer approximately $922,857 to an account that a co-conspirator controlled under someone else’s name, according to prosecutors.
Rather than keep a low profile, Abbas’ social media posts on Instagram showed him living a luxurious lifestyle, with private jets, expensive cars and high-end clothes and watches, the AP reported.
“I hope someday I will be inspiring more young people to join me on this path,” Abbas wrote on one Instagram post.
“Abbas bragged on social media about his lavish lifestyle -- a lifestyle funded by his involvement in transnational fraud and money laundering conspiracies targeting victims around the world,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement “Money laundering and business email compromise scams are a massive international crime problem, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement and international partners to identify and prosecute those involved, wherever they may be.”
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