Two Nigerian athletes Emmanuel Ineh and Toluwani Adebakin would be sentenced on February 15, 2023 after being found guilty of internet fraud in the USA.
Ineh a promising long and triple jumper and Adebakin a 400m and 200m runner are facing a maximum of 10 years imprisonment for conniving and operating a fraud scheme, which earned them thousands of US dollars. The duo were convicted before a US District Judge Kristi Johnson in Mississippi.They were alleged to have transferred the gains of the fraud to Nigeria.
Court documents revealed that Ineh, 23, and Adebakin, 25, pleaded guilty to violations of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1957, for engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activities, collectively sending tens of thousands of illicitly obtained proceeds to fraudsters in Nigeria as part of a larger mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy.
Ineh and Adebakin who is a founding member of Athletic Heat an online track and field publication are roommates at William Carey University. William Carey University was cooperative throughout the investigation.
A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Ineh represented Nigeria at the Africa Youth Championship 2018 in Algeria and was home last year to compete in the national trials for the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.
Only last week celebrity internet fraudster Ramon Abbas a.k.a Hushpuppi pleaded guilty to multiple wire fraud and would also be sentenced next year.
