Baltimore Woman Sentenced For Money Laundering And Wire Fraud Scheme

U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Maddox sentenced Lakeisha Parker, 33, of Baltimore, Maryland, to three years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, including six months of home detention, for her role in a large, multi-member money laundering conspiracy. Judge Maddox also ordered Parker to pay more than $8 million in restitution.

Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentence with Acting Special Agent in Charge Evan Campanella, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Baltimore; Special Agent in Charge Kareem A. Carter, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) – Washington, D.C. Field Office; and Acting Special Agent in Charge George Golliday, Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General (EPA-OIG).

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act — a federal law enacted in March 2020 — provided emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. It gives financial assistance including forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and other expenses. Established by the CARES Act, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) — administered through the Small Business Administration (SBA) — along with the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), helped businesses meet their financial obligations. An EIDL advance does not have to be repaid, and small businesses can receive an advance, even if they are not approved for an EIDL loan. The maximum advance amount is $10,000.

On July 22, 2025, Parker pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  As part of her plea agreement, Parker admitted that beginning in 2019, and continuing into November 2023, she conspired with Adanegbe Gift Osenmwenkhae, Yahya Sowe, aka “Cash,” Gedeon Agbeyome, Victor Killen, Areal Harris, Bright Boateng, Faizou Gnora, Emily Gil Arias, Fatoumata Boiro, Lawrence Ogunsanwo, Martin Ogisi, Blondel Ndjouandjouaka, Kevin Colon, Lorena Perez Herrera, and others to launder proceeds of a large-scale wire fraud. The co-conspirators engaged in various financial transactions to conceal the nature, location, source, ownership, and control of the wire-fraud proceeds, while carrying out the wire-fraud schemes.  Parker also admitted to laundering money obtained from fraudulent loan applications for COVID-19 relief benefits from the EIDL program.

Victims included government agencies, organizations, and companies, including an environmental trust, urban redevelopment program, medical center, transportation and logistics company, school district, college, and county government, among others.  Parker personally laundered more than $1 million of fraud proceeds.

According to the plea agreement, Parker created a limited liability company to serve as a shell entity, opening at least five bank accounts in its name, and then used it to receive and launder fraud proceeds.  Parker also used and controlled several different encrypted electronic communication accounts to coordinate with co-conspirators.

The District of Maryland Strike Force is one of five strike forces established throughout the United States by the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute COVID-19 fraud, including fraud relating to the CARES Act.  The CARES Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The strike forces focus on large-scale, multi-state pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors.  The strike forces are interagency law enforcement efforts, using prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams designed to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds.

For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit justice.gov/coronavirus. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended the HSI-led Document and Benefit Fraud/Mid-Atlantic El Dorado Task Force, IRS-CI, and EPA-OIG for their assistance.  Ms. Hayes also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry M. Gruber, Bijon A. Mostoufi, and Jared M. Beim, who are prosecuting the federal case, and Paralegal Specialist Joanna B.N. Huber, for her assistance.