Doctor falls for Nigerian scam...
Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 7:39 pm
[align=center]Doc loses £350k in net scam
By JOHN TROUP
thesun.co.uk[/align]
A TOP eye surgeon was duped by an internet fraudster — and handed him a staggering £350,000. Consultant Fawzia Ashkanani gave the massive sum to Nigerian Chinaenye Mokelu after he promised her a slice of his “$300million fortune”. Dr Ashkanani, of Dumfries, even met Mokelu in London, where the conman showed her a suitcase full of FAKE cash.
Kuwaiti-born Dr Ashkanani — a consultant at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary — fell for a phishing spam email Mokelu sent to UK bank account holders asking for help in transfering the nine-figure sum from Nigeria to Britain. Prosecutor Andrew Jackson told a court: “He said he needed someone who had a bank account in the UK to facilitate a bank-to-bank transfer. Unfortunately for her, she replied to the email. During the course of a number of subsequent emails and telephone calls the victim was asked to transfer money into two accounts controlled by the defendant.”
Mokelu, 44, of Grays, Essex, swindled £350,000 from Dr Ashkanani, of which only £30,000 has been traced by cops. He had used that to to pay off his mortgage and splash out on luxuries. The dad-of-two was yesterday told at Basildon Crown Court that he faces a lengthy prison sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to defraud and having a fake passport.
Karl Volz, defending, said: “He says he was a very trusted lieutenant in this conspiracy. There are various other names involved in this case who have not been tracked down by the prosecution.” Recorder Jeffrey Yearwood told Mokelu: “Clearly he is a very serious player as far as this is concerned. This defendant is plainly in no doubt that a significant custodial sentence is the only option.”
Mokelu was remanded in custody until June for the preparation of pre-sentencing reports.
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You'd have thought she'd have seen that coming...
By JOHN TROUP
thesun.co.uk[/align]
A TOP eye surgeon was duped by an internet fraudster — and handed him a staggering £350,000. Consultant Fawzia Ashkanani gave the massive sum to Nigerian Chinaenye Mokelu after he promised her a slice of his “$300million fortune”. Dr Ashkanani, of Dumfries, even met Mokelu in London, where the conman showed her a suitcase full of FAKE cash.
Kuwaiti-born Dr Ashkanani — a consultant at Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary — fell for a phishing spam email Mokelu sent to UK bank account holders asking for help in transfering the nine-figure sum from Nigeria to Britain. Prosecutor Andrew Jackson told a court: “He said he needed someone who had a bank account in the UK to facilitate a bank-to-bank transfer. Unfortunately for her, she replied to the email. During the course of a number of subsequent emails and telephone calls the victim was asked to transfer money into two accounts controlled by the defendant.”
Mokelu, 44, of Grays, Essex, swindled £350,000 from Dr Ashkanani, of which only £30,000 has been traced by cops. He had used that to to pay off his mortgage and splash out on luxuries. The dad-of-two was yesterday told at Basildon Crown Court that he faces a lengthy prison sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to defraud and having a fake passport.
Karl Volz, defending, said: “He says he was a very trusted lieutenant in this conspiracy. There are various other names involved in this case who have not been tracked down by the prosecution.” Recorder Jeffrey Yearwood told Mokelu: “Clearly he is a very serious player as far as this is concerned. This defendant is plainly in no doubt that a significant custodial sentence is the only option.”
Mokelu was remanded in custody until June for the preparation of pre-sentencing reports.
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You'd have thought she'd have seen that coming...
