The United States Magistrate Judge in Eastern District of New York, Ramon Reyes has received a letter from the US Department of Justice, claiming that the surety provided by the embattled aide to Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State, Abidemi Rufai, is also a suspected fraudster.
Recall that KOKO TV reported that Abidemi Rufai was arrested on Friday 14th May, 2021 while trying to get out of the United States, and accused of using the identities of more than 100 Washington residents to steal more than $350,000 in unemployment benefitsfrom the Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD) during the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
After being arraigned in court, Abidemi Rufai presented a registered nurse identified as Nekpen Soyemi as his surety after his brother, Alaba Rufai, who is listed in court records could not post the $300,000 surety bond for his bail. His bail was then deniedand delayed till May 25 by Magistrate Reyes, to give enough time to federal prosecutors to appeal the order. The Acting U.S. Attorney, Tessa Gorma, however, in a letter to the court alleged that Ms Soyemi is also a suspected fraudster and should not be allowed to stand as a surety for Mr Rufai. Read also: Abidemi Rufai: FBI Arrests Ogun Governor’s Aide Over $350000 Fraud
As reported by Premium Times, Gorma also said the FBI is unable to confirm that the Surety owns a real property, as there are no records showing that she has an interest in the property listed in the court document. “First, the FBI has conducted research into the Surety and has learned information indicating that the Surety is not an appropriate person to perform that role. In 2015, the Surety’s bank (Bank of America) issued a report naming the Surety as a suspect in an investigation into an email impersonation scheme”, the letter reported reads in part.“According to the bank’s report, a person purporting to be a donor deposited $134,000 into the bank account of a legitimate nonprofit. The “donor” (who was never identified) then contacted the non-profit and stated that some of the deposited funds were intended for a different recipient. The donor asked the non-profit to wire the excess funds to three different accounts, one of which was a Bank of America account in the Surety’s name. The report indicates that the Surety then made cash withdrawals of the proceeds at two different B of A locations. The Surety did not respond to inquiries from Bank of America.” Read also: Hushpuppi Stole U.S. Unemployment Benefits – FBI Adds New Money Laundering Charge And Evidence
“Second, FBI’s research was unable to confirm that the Surety owns the listed real property. Mortgage and deed records for the property indicate that it was last purchased by an individual with the initials L.S.G. on November 7, 2014. The Surety has also submitted records showing that she has $335 in Robinhood investment account and $1,838 in a checking account. Neither submission suggests the Surety is in a position to secure a $300,000 bond”, the statement reportedly added.TRENDING VIDEO OF THE DAY: Basketball Africa League – GNBC vs Patriots
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“According to the bank’s report, a person purporting to be a donor deposited $134,000 into the bank account of a legitimate nonprofit. The “donor” (who was never identified) then contacted the non-profit and stated that some of the deposited funds were intended for a different recipient. The donor asked the non-profit to wire the excess funds to three different accounts, one of which was a Bank of America account in the Surety’s name. The report indicates that the Surety then made cash withdrawals of the proceeds at two different B of A locations. The Surety did not respond to inquiries from Bank of America.”
