14 arrested in $50M Ohio fraud takedown
Federal prosecutors in Ohio charged 14 people across multiple fraud conspiracies totaling more than $50 million, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Thursday, unveiling an unprecedented federal-state enforcement partnership to combat financial crime in the state.
The takedown included 9 defendants charged with over $42 million in fraud across the Southern District of Ohio and Northern District of Ohio, according to the DOJ. Three additional conspirators were detained this week in connection with a separate over $15 million romance-scam operation, while two more defendants remain pending extradition the Justice Department. A $1.4 million COVID-19 relief fraud case also factored into the coordinated action.
Named Defendants and Charges
Among those detained in the romance-fraud conspiracy are Jamal Abubakari (aka "Arrangement"), 22, of Accra, Ghana; Kamal Abubakari (aka "Lancaster"), 22, also of Accra; and Amanda Joy Opoku-Boachie (aka Amanda Joy Glum), 53. Two additional defendants—Frederick Kumi (aka Abu Trica), 31, of Swedru, Ghana, and Daniel Yussif (aka "Slab"), 31, of Accra—are pending extradition the Justice Department.
Local reporting also identified Robert Haley of Butler County as accused in a $12 million Medicaid scam, ordered to post a $500,000 cash surety bond, surrender his passport, and submit to GPS monitoring ABC 6 News.
Federal-State Partnership and Asset Seizures
The DOJ announced the creation of a federal-state data-sharing agreement and the launch of the FBI's "Most Wanted Fraudsters" list as part of a broader enforcement initiative. "The Justice Department today announced unprecedented federal and state cooperation in Ohio in the fight against fraud," the agency stated the Justice Department.
Authorities seized seven bank accounts totaling $600,000 and 14 vehicles valued in the millions during the operation ABC 6 News. The coordinated takedown marks a shift toward integrated federal-state prosecution of multi-jurisdictional fraud schemes, particularly those involving international conspirators and organized romance-scam networks targeting vulnerable victims.
