U.S. Department of Labor OIG, Nigerian citizen charged with defrauding Washington State Employment Security Department of over $350,000 (USAO WD-WA 05/17/2021) (2021-05-20)

Summary

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Washington, dated May 17, 2021, announcing that Abidemi Rufai, aka Sandy Tang, 42, of Lekki, Nigeria, was arrested at JFK Airport in New York on a criminal complaint charging wire fraud over a scheme to steal over $350,000 in unemployment benefits from the Washington State Employment Security Department. Rufai made an initial appearance on May 15, 2021 in New York. The complaint alleges that Rufai used the stolen identities of more than 100 Washington residents to file claims with ESD and also filed claims with Hawaii, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Montana, New York and Pennsylvania. According to the release, more than $288,000 was deposited into an American bank account controlled by Rufai between March and August 2020. The charges are only allegations.

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                                      Department of Justice
                                         U.S. Attorney’s Office
                                   Western District of Washington


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                            Monday, May 17, 2021

 Nigerian citizen charged with defrauding Washington State
    Employment Security Department of over $350,000
                      Arrested at NY airport on criminal complaint
Seattle – A Nigerian citizen was arrested Friday evening at JFK Airport in New York on a criminal
complaint charging him with wire fraud for his scheme to steal over $350,000 in unemployment
benefits from the Washington State Employment Security Department, announced Acting U.S.
Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Abidemi Rufai, aka Sandy Tang, 42, of Lekki, Nigeria, made his initial
appearance Saturday May 15, 2021 in New York. He is scheduled for a detention hearing
Wednesday.

“Since the first fraud reports to our office in April 2020, we have worked diligently with a federal law
enforcement team to track down the criminals who stole funds designated for pandemic relief,” said
Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman. “This is the first, but will not be the last, significant arrest in our
ongoing investigation of ESD fraud.”

The criminal complaint alleges that Rufai used the stolen identities of more than 100 Washington
residents to file fraudulent claims with ESD for pandemic-related unemployment benefits. Rufai
also filed fraudulent unemployment claims with Hawaii, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Montana, New
York, and Pennsylvania. Rufai used variations of a single e-mail address in a manner intended to
evade automatic detection by fraud systems. By using this practice, Rufai made it appear that each
claim was connected with a different email account.

Rufai caused the fraud proceeds to be paid out to online payment accounts such as ‘Green Dot’
accounts, or wired to bank accounts controlled by “money mules.” Some of the proceeds were then
mailed to the Jamaica, New York address of Rufai’s relative. Law enforcement determined more
than $288,000 was deposited into an American bank account controlled by Rufai between March
and August 2020.

“Greed is a powerful motivator. Unfortunately, the greed alleged to this defendant affects all
taxpayers,” said Donald Voiret, Special Agent in Charge FBI Seattle. “The FBI and our partners will
not stand idly by while individuals attempt to defraud programs meant to assist American workers
and families suffering the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Wire fraud is punishable by up to thirty years in prison when it relates to benefits paid in connection
with a presidentially-declared disaster or emergency, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

The charges contained in the complaint are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless
and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Department of Labor Office of
Inspector General (DOL-OIG). The fraud on ESD is being investigated cooperatively by the FBI,
DOL-OIG, Social Security Office of Inspector General, U.S. Secret Service, the United States Postal
Inspection Service, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations. The Washington
Employment Security Department is cooperating in the investigation.
The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Seth Wilkinson, Cindy Chang,
and Benjamin Diggs of the Western District of Washington, and Trial Attorney Jane Lee of DOJ’s
Cyber Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).
Topic(s):                                            Component(s):
Coronavirus                                          USAO - Washington, Western
Cyber Crime
Disaster Fraud                                       Contact:
Identity Theft                                       Press contact for the U.S. Attorney’s Office is
                                                     Communications Director Emily Langlie at
                                                     (206) 553-4110 or Emily.Langlie@usdoj.gov.


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