Augustine Amechi, a Nigerian based in Huntington, West Virginia, United States, has been sentenced by a District Court to a year and a day in federal prison following his involvement in a fraud scheme.

According to the US Department of Justice, 24-year-old Amechi was sentenced on Monday for being a member of a syndicate that defrauded at least 37 victims from Huntington and other places between 2018 and 2021.

The Nigerian, who was a student at Marshall University, also in West Virginia, admitted to convincing many romance fraud victims to send money for a variety of false and fraudulent reasons to bank accounts controlled by him.

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He further confessed to receiving approximately $108,601.92 (over N45 million at the current exchange rate) directly deposited into his bank accounts from victims, over $150,000 (over N62 million) in cash mailed in packages to his Huntington residence and over $140,000 (over N58 million) in deposits from Zelle, a banking application.

The Huntington resident would keep some of the money for himself and transfer the rest to other members of the syndicate in Nigeria. He admitted to transferring $15,000 to bank accounts in Nigeria.

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After pleading guilty to the charge in November 2021, Amechi agreed to pay at least $192,762.19 in restitution to some of his victims. He was sentenced by Judge Robert C. Chambers.