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On Tuesday, April 25 at the Central Islip federal court, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, along with a New York FBI director, announced the charges against Odera Odabi.
Odabi is charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, according to the announcement.
The 54-year-old Georgia man is alleged to have falsely informed a Suffolk County resident (known in the case as John Doe) that he needed to pay an exorbitant amount of money in order to claim an inheritance from Singapore through the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Odabi is reported to have told the man that once the money was sent, he would obtain a “Certificate of Origination” from the IMF, allowing him to claim the inheritance.
This is not a certificate the IMF issues.
Because of this scam, between April 2020 and December 2021, John Doe sent around $5.3 million total to Odabi and his co-conspirators.
Odabi allegedly received approximately $2 million dollars to accounts for Georgia-based companies he operated.
Out of the money the scammers collected, nearly all of it was spent on Odabi and his alleged partners in crime, including trips to the Apple Store and Louis Vuitton, according to the charges against him. Only $197,000 was frozen by bank officials suspecting fraud.
“Odabi and his co-conspirators callously abused the trust of an elderly victim to line their pockets with millions in stolen cash,” stated Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
“This Office and our partners will work tirelessly to ensure that those who prey upon some of the most vulnerable members of our community are called to account for their crimes.”
Odabi is charged with:
- Conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud
- Conspiracy to commit money laundering
He is scheduled to appear in the Central Islip federal court at a later date.
If convicted, he could face up to 40 years in prison.
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