Ikponmwosa Erhinmwinrose, a 39-year-old resident of Atlanta, Georgia, has been convicted by a federal jury in Denver on multiple charges, including six counts of wire fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of wire fraud conspiracy, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that Erhinmwinrose and his co-conspirators stole over $7.6 million from various government relief programs. These included the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, several state unemployment insurance programs such as Colorado’s, and tax refunds. The relief programs were established by the federal government to provide economic support during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The group used stolen identities from more than 1,000 victims to obtain these funds. According to prosecutors, some victims did not receive IRS stimulus payments while others received loan repayment notices for debts they never incurred. Some also faced negative attention on social media because people believed they had taken out large loans when in fact the funds went to Erhinmwinrose and his associates.
To carry out these activities, Erhinmwinrose created numerous email accounts using false names to impersonate individuals and businesses. He collaborated with others to submit fraudulent benefit applications and instructed a network of conspirators to launder the proceeds through various bank accounts before converting them into cash or transferring them overseas.
United States District Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney presided over the trial.
The investigation was conducted by several agencies: the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, FDIC Office of Inspector General, Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Inspector General, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorneys Craig Fansler and Sonia Dave prosecuted the case.
Individuals with information about attempted fraud related to COVID-19 are encouraged to report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or submitting a complaint through their online form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form
Case Number: 1-23-cr-00300-CNS
