A Nigerian, Tochukwu Albert Nnebocha, 43, has been extradited from Poland to the United States to face trial over an alleged multi-million-dollar inheritance fraud scheme said to have targeted elderly Americans for more than five years.
Nnebocha was brought before U.S. Magistrate Judge Enjolique Lett in Miami on Tuesday, months after his arrest in Poland in April 2025.
He is facing charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, alongside multiple counts of mail and wire fraud. If convicted, he could spend up to 20 years behind bars.
According to court filings, Nnebocha and his partners allegedly dispatched personalized letters to elderly victims across the U.S., claiming they were heirs to vast fortunes left by deceased relatives in Spain.
The victims were then directed to pay various charges such as delivery fees and taxes to process the purported inheritances.
Funds were allegedly funneled through intermediaries in the U.S., many of whom had themselves previously fallen prey to fraudsters and were coerced into transferring the money.
Prosecutors said no beneficiary ever received an inheritance.
Two alleged accomplices, Okezie Bonaventure Ogbata, extradited from Portugal, and Ehis Lawrence Akhimie, extradited from the UK — have already pleaded guilty.
They were sentenced to 97 months imprisonment each by U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman.
“This extradition underscores our commitment to pursue fraudsters wherever they are found,” prosecutors said after Nnebocha’s court appearance.