A United States District Court has sentenced Franklin Ikechukwu Nwadialo, the Chairman of Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, to five years imprisonment for orchestrating an online romance scam that defrauded eight victims of more than $3.5 million.
Nwadialo, 42, was sentenced on Monday by the U.S. District Court in Tacoma, Washington, after being convicted on multiple counts of wire fraud linked to a romance fraud scheme that prosecutors said spanned more than 15 years.
According to a statement issued by the United States Department of Justice, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd announced the sentence, describing the case as one involving extensive financial and emotional exploitation of vulnerable victims.
Nwadialo was indicted in December 2023 on 14 counts of wire fraud. He was later arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at an airport in Texas after arriving in the United States in 2024.
Court records revealed that he used fake online identities, often posing as a man named “Giovanni” on dating platforms including Match, Zoosk and Christian Café. Using stolen photographs and fabricated personal details, he claimed to be a military officer deployed overseas to gain the trust of victims.
Prosecutors said Nwadialo employed a series of elaborate lies to persuade victims to send him money. In one instance, he claimed he had been fined $150,000 by the military for revealing his deployment location to a romantic partner and needed financial assistance to pay the penalty.
He also falsely claimed to be managing inherited funds following his father’s death, investing money on behalf of victims, and raising money for his father’s funeral and his son’s school tuition. In another scheme, he reportedly claimed to operate a non-profit organisation supporting children with autism.
At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright described the crimes as “devastating,” saying the scheme not only destroyed victims financially but also left many suffering from shame, depression and social isolation.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd said the defendant deliberately preyed on people already experiencing emotional pain.
“This defendant preyed on those already suffering from the loss of loved ones or other heartbreak. For some 15 years, he upended the lives of people he never met,” Floyd said.
FBI Seattle Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Harrington said Nwadialo targeted older, often widowed or divorced individuals searching for companionship online before manipulating them into handing over their life savings.
According to prosecutors, one victim remained in what she believed was a genuine relationship with Nwadialo’s fake online persona for three years before the FBI revealed the deception. Another victim, a widow hoping to find love again after the death of her husband, lost both her home and life savings and continues to suffer financial hardship.
The prosecution argued that the seriousness of the offences and the lasting harm inflicted on victims warranted a five-year prison sentence.
The FBI investigated the case.
