Jerry Chucks Ozor and Iheanyichukwu Jonathan Abraham have owned up to committing international financial frauds against over 400 Americans.

The duo, who are 43 and 44 years old respectively, are said to have engaged in email fraud in which they asked their victims to pay some money to claim some inheritances purportedly left for them by their late relatives in Spain.

The US Justice Department revealed the facts of their offences in a statement titled ‘Two Nigerian Nationals Previously Extradited from the United Kingdom Plead Guilty to International Fraud Scheme that Defrauded Elderly U.S. Victims’ and posted on its website.

Court papers show that the two Nigerians were members of a syndicate of cross-border fraudsters reputed for sending fake personalised emails in the US. The sender would pretend to be a representative of a bank in Spain where the purported inheritance is domiciled.

The criminal group would prompt their victims to send some money for delivery, taxes and payments to avoid questioning from government authorities.

“Victims sent money to the defendants through a complex web of U.S.-based former victims. The defendants convinced these former victims to receive money from new victims and then forward the fraud proceeds to others (thereby serving as so-called “money mules”). In pleading guilty, the defendants admitted to defrauding over $6 million from more than 400 victims, many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable,” the statement said.

READ ALSO: 3 Nigerians Extradited to the US Over ‘Inheritance Fraud’

Ozor pleaded guilty on May 18 to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, while Abraham admitted his guilt on May 31. US District court reserved their sentencing to July 27 and August 9. Both of them face a maximum of 20 years’ imprisonment.

“These guilty pleas are a result of the unwavering commitment and countless hours spent by HSI and our law enforcement partners to ensure that this investigation led the extradition of the two Nigerian nationals,” Scott Brown, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Arizona, was quoted in the statement.

“Operating a transnational inheritance fraud scheme that targets the elderly is not only morally reprehensible, it also undermines the financial systems we use and depend upon. I thank everyone who worked on this case. These two defendants are one step closer to facing much-deserved prison time.”

The department is calling on anyone who is 60 or above and was defrauded in the past to contact its National Elder Fraud hotline to log in their complaints.