Military impersonation scheme lands local man in prison

HOUSTON – A 30-year-old Houston man has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of conspiracy to commit mail fraud in a scheme to defraud victims through a variety of internet scams, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Ganiyu Abayomi Jimoh pleaded guilty Aug. 1, 2022.

Today, U.S. District Judge Andrew S. Hanen ordered Jimoh to serve 36 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. Jimoh was also ordered to pay $405,427.80 in restitution. At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence including that at least one of the victims was an 84-year-old man who was defrauded of money by an online “girlfriend” and how $13,500 of his losses were deposited into accounts Jimoh opened.

In 2019, Jimoh began working with co-conspirators pretending to be U.S. military soldiers deployed to Afghanistan. They would solicit victims wishing to assist soldiers stationed overseas and persuaded them to contribute monies toward non-existent real estate deals. 

As part of his plea, Jimoh admitted to using counterfeit passports to open bank accounts to receive funds from the victims for his personal benefit.

Jimoh will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman prosecuted the case.