Popular American Businessman Sentenced to 74 Years in Prison by Nigerian Court in Lagos
Justice Mojisola Dada of the Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja has sentenced Marco Antonio Ramirez, an American businessman, to 74 years imprisonment for his role in a $1.2 million US visa fraud.
The sentence was handed down after Ramirez was found guilty on 16 charges related to defrauding investors of $1.2 million through a visa scam and an additional $368,698.24 in a separate fraud case. The charges were brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
US Court Sentences Three Nigerians to 235 Years over Online Scams
The EFCC accused Ramirez and his companies—USA NOW LLC, Eagle Ford Instalodge Group LP, and USA Now Capital Group LP—of defrauding three Nigerians between February and August 2013 in Lagos. He allegedly collected funds from his victims as processing fees for investments in USA Now Energy Capital Group LP, which he claimed would secure them a U.S. Green Card through the Employment-Based Fifth Preference (EB-5) Investor Programme. However, Ramirez failed to deliver on his promises.
The EFCC stated that Ramirez’s actions violated Sections 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act of 2004.
Court Sentences Fake Nigerian Senator to 2 Years Imprisonment for Fraud
Despite pleading not guilty, Ramirez was found guilty of multiple counts of fraud and theft, including dishonestly converting $545,000 from Godson Onyemaechi Echegile and $314,800 from Abubakar Umar Sadiq for personal use.
After multiple adjournments, the court sentenced Ramirez to 10 years for each of the 16 charges related to the initial visa scam. Additionally, he received sentences of eight years for counts one to six and ten years for counts seven and eight in the separate fraud case involving $368,698.24, where he also defrauded Gabriel Ogie Edeoghon of $250,000, falsely claiming the funds were for a U.S. Green Card investment.
