A Nigerian national, Charles Uchenna Nwadavid, has been charged for his alleged role in allegedly stealing more than $2.5 million from six romance scam victims and transferring their money to cryptocurrency accounts that he controlled.
The US Department of Justice announced this in a statement on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.
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According to the statement, Nwadavid, 34, of Abuja, Nigeria, was arrested on April 7, 2025, after arriving on a flight from the United Kingdom to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
In January 2024, a federal grand jury in Boston indicted Nwadavid on charges of mail fraud and money laundering. Nwadavid appeared in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas on April 8, 2025, and was detained pending further proceedings.
He will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.
According to the charging documents, “romance scams” recruit victims through advertisements for online relationships on dating or social media websites. Individuals perpetuating romance scams create fictitious profiles and then use them to gain victims’ trust through a purported romantic relationship. Perpetrators then direct their victims to send money or to conduct financial transactions involving other victims’ money under false pretences, such as an urgent need for money to secure a multi-million dollar inheritance or to pay for an unexpected hospitalization.
Between in or about 2016 and September 2019, Nwadavid allegedly participated in romance scams that tricked victims into sending money abroad.
In an effort to conceal his role as the recipient of the victims’ funds, Nwadavid allegedly used a victim from Massachusetts (Victim 1) to receive funds from five other victims around the United States.
Nwadavid then allegedly tricked Victim 1 in to passing her own and the other victims’ money to him through cryptocurrency transactions, and allegedly accessed accounts in Victim 1’s name from overseas, to transfer the victims’ funds to accounts he controlled at LocalBitcoins, an online cryptocurrency platform.
The mail fraud charge provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the loss to the victim, restitution and forfeiture.
“The money laundering charges provide for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the laundering transactions, restitution and forfeiture. The defendant will also be subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed,” the statement read.
“Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
“United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mackenzie A. Queenin of the Criminal Division is prosecuting the case.
“The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.”
