Georgia Man Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison for Online Romance Scams Involving $356,500
Stephen Odiboh, 53, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, targeted four victims through online relationships and fraudulent payment schemes. Federal prosecutors reported total losses and attempted losses of $356,500.
A Georgia man has been sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for his role in a fraud conspiracy that targeted four people between 2023 and March 2025. The schemes involved fake online identities, fraudulent romantic relationships, gift cards, checks, and electronic payments.
Stephen Odiboh, 53, of Stone Mountain, Georgia, was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa sentenced him on October 8, 2026, and ordered him to pay $196,500 in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York.
Federal prosecutors reported that the total financial loss and attempted loss associated with the schemes amounted to $356,500. Not all of that money was lost: in one instance, a bank detected suspected fraud and stopped payment on two checks before they could be cashed. In another, a potential victim recognized a fraudulent transaction and refused to deposit a check.
Fake Identity Used to Target a 77-Year-Old Woman
One of the schemes began in 2023, when Odiboh contacted a 77-year-old woman in Western New York through Facebook. According to the plea agreement, he posed as a man named Oliver Wilson, falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen, a widower, and a resident of Norway.
Over approximately 18 months, Wilson established an online romantic relationship with the woman. He told her he needed gift cards to remain online and continue communicating with her.
The woman sent approximately 30 gift cards worth $500 each, totaling about $15,000.
Between January and July 2024, she also mailed eight checks totaling more than $162,000 to individuals and entities designated by Wilson. Two of those checks were sent directly to Odiboh.
The requests for money continued. In December 2024, Wilson claimed that Norwegian customs authorities were holding him and that he needed $158,000 to pay a fine. He instructed the woman to mail two additional checks totaling that amount.
Her bank detected the fraud and stopped payment before the checks could be cashed.
Fraudulent Schemes Targeted Other Victims
Prosecutors also described three additional schemes involving Odiboh and his co-conspirators.
In April 2024, a co-conspirator posing as a customer named Alex Alberto contacted a caterer seeking services. The caterer requested an $800 deposit. Instead of sending the exact amount, Alberto provided a check for $2,800 and instructed the caterer to send the additional $2,000 to Odiboh through Zelle.
The caterer recognized the suspected fraud and did not deposit the check, preventing the proposed transfer.
A separate scheme involved a person using the name William Rivera. In 2024, Rivera contacted a victim through an online dating website and gained the victim’s trust. The victim was subsequently persuaded to send $2,000 to Odiboh through Cash App on August 14, 2024.
Another victim was contacted through a dating website in March 2025 by a person using the name Alec Jonas. The victim was led to believe that a romantic relationship was developing.
After gaining her trust, Jonas claimed to be working in Bahrain and said he needed money to ship goods from Bahrain to Texas. The woman wired $17,525 to a bank account controlled by him, according to federal prosecutors.
The allegations in these cases describe several different approaches to obtaining money: requests for gift cards within a romantic relationship, a fabricated emergency involving customs authorities, a fraudulent overpayment by check, and requests for transfers through payment applications and bank accounts.
Federal Investigation and Sentencing
The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire prosecuted the case.
Odiboh’s sentence was announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York on October 8, 2026. In addition to serving 33 months in federal prison, he was ordered to pay $196,500 in restitution to compensate victims.
The case demonstrates how online fraud can extend beyond a single dating profile or conversation. The schemes described by prosecutors involved multiple identities and payment methods, with co-conspirators participating in several of the transactions.
