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Nigerian fraudster and a counterpart of Dubai-based Nigerian fraudster Hushpuppi, Mr Woodberry, has been handed an eight years jail term and deportation after serving his jail term.
Jacob Olalekan Ponle, also known as Mr Woodberry, was given eight years and three months jail sentence by a federal judge in the United States for orchestrating a multimillion-dollar fraud.
According to court documents, Mr Ponle was sentenced on July 11 by Judge Robert Gettleman of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago.
Also Read: Woodberry pleads guilty to internet fraud; agrees to pay $8 million to victims
“The defendant is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to be imprisoned for a total term of 100 months as to count,” Mr Gettleman said.
Following his conviction on one count of fraud, Mr Woodberry received his sentence. Following a plea agreement in April, seven further counts were dropped.
In order to be transferred to the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut, where his family members, particularly his American fiancée, would be permitted to visit him, Mr Gettleman ordered Mr Woodberry to present himself to the U.S. Marshal Service.
Woodberry will also be “surrendered to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody for deportation immediately following his incarceration”, the judge said.
Also Read: Woodberry still in jail; US court dismissed one charge leaving 8
The court determined that Woodberry has the financial means to fulfil the full payment but waived all interest on the amount of the restitution, so he will pay seven victims around $8 million in compensation.
On June 29, American prosecutors requested that Mr Woodberry get a 14-year prison term for the fraud he perpetrated between January and September of this year.
The prosecutors also asked the court for permission to sell the fraudster’s 152 bitcoins, but only after giving the public 30 days’ notice so that anyone with a claim might file one.
When Mr Woodberry was sentenced, it appeared that no one with a legitimate stake had come forward.
Also Read: U.S. court dismisses fraud case against Hushpuppi’s associate, Woodberry
Additionally, the prosecutors suggested that Mr Woodberry, who is well-known for flaunting his extravagant lifestyle on social media, forfeit items held by the Dubai police, including a Rolls-Royce, a Lamborghini Urus, a Mercedes-Benz G-Class AMG G55, four Rolex watches, a Patek Philippe watch, and three Audemars Piguet watches.
In addition, he must surrender two bank cards, roughly $1,835 in Emirati dirhams, and around $15.45 in South African rands, along with five gold bracelets, two gold bracelet keys, six gold neck chains, one gold and diamond-studded necklace, and one small gold nugget.
Along with Ramon ‘Hushpuppi’ Abbas, who was sentenced to 11 years in prison for computer fraud in the US late last year, Mr Woodberry was taken into custody on June 10, 2020.
Read More: Dubai Police extradite Hushpuppi and Mr Woodberry to the US
