Baltimore City Wire

U.S. District Judge Julie R. Rubin sentenced Damilola Ojo, 31, of Windsor Mill, Maryland, to 48 months in federal prison and two years of supervised release for his involvement in a bank fraud scheme exceeding $1.8 million. Ojo also admitted to obtaining a fraudulent $475,000 COVID-19 CARES Act loan. He was ordered to forfeit $20,000 and pay restitution of $546,000.

The sentence was announced by Erek L. Barron, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, and Andrew McKay, Special Agent in Charge of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA).

According to his guilty plea, from April 2016 through August 2019, Ojo conspired with Jamelia Thompson, Victor Ojo, Raissa Kaossele, and others to commit bank fraud using the IRS’s Modernized Internet Employer Identification Number (Mod IEIN) system. This system requires users to enter valid names and Social Security numbers to obtain an EIN for a business.

The co-conspirators created various EINs using stolen Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and used them along with fraudulently obtained state business certificates to open bank accounts at different financial institutions. These accounts were used for depositing stolen or altered checks or receiving fraudulent wire transfers.

Proceeds from these activities were quickly withdrawn or transferred to other accounts controlled by the co-conspirators. A Google account belonging to one co-conspirator contained many fraudulent identification and business documents packaged as "work kits." These kits were sent electronically among the conspirators who used them to open bank accounts and conduct fraudulent transactions.

Upon his arrest at a shared residence with Thompson, authorities found evidence of ongoing fraud including numerous ETN documents and IDs in other people’s names.

In addition to the bank fraud scheme, Ojo admitted to participating in another fraudulent activity involving pandemic relief funds under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. On November 21, 2021, Thompson opened a bank account at Woodforest National Bank under her business "Jamaria Empire LLC." A $475,000 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) intended for the Idaho Women’s Charitable Foundation was deposited into this account on February 14, 2022 but was depleted through checks made out to Ojo and others.

Co-conspirator Jamelia Thompson previously pled guilty to conspiracy charges and received a sentence of 37 months in federal prison. Raissa Kaossele was sentenced to eight months of home confinement after pleading guilty. Victor Ojo has pled guilty but awaits sentencing.

The District of Maryland Strike Force is part of five strike forces established by the U.S. Department of Justice focusing on large-scale pandemic relief frauds related to COVID-19 aid programs like the CARES Act.

For more information on pandemic-related responses by the Department or reporting attempted COVID-19 fraud allegations can be done via https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus or calling NCDF Hotline at 866-720-5721.

U.S. Attorney Barron commended TIGTA's investigative work and thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph L. Wenner and Paul Riley for prosecuting the case alongside Paralegal Specialist Joanna B.N Huber from Maryland COVID-19 Strike Force.