Benin prince arrested for defrauding job seekers of N19m in US
A Nigerian prince, Osmond Eweka, and his accomplice, Kamel McKay, have been accused of defrauding hundreds of job seekers of thousands of dollars by promising them high-paying gigs in New York.
31-year-old Eweka, a prince from the Royal Family of Ogiesoba Eweka of the Great Benin Kingdom, and his 27-year-old friend allegedly pretended to run two consulting firms in Manhattan.
They allegedly promised unsuspecting clients that they would be placed at various jobs across New York City if they paid a fee.
Prosecutors said they would invite their victims to their office for an interview and then have them pay a fee, ranging between $300 and $700.
After collecting the money, the men would send the job seekers to different businesses, where they were turned away by employers who weren’t expecting them.
The victims then found that they could no longer get in contact with the alleged fraudsters or the consulting firm.
According to authorities, Eweka and McKay duped 250 people, having ran the alleged scam from January to June 2018.
Prosecutors said some of the jobs Eweka and McKay promised their victims were for hotel housekeeping and front desk receptionists. The men allegedly used the popular job-seeking website Indeed.com to find their victims.
Eweka pleaded guilty to charges of larceny and scheme to defraud when arraigned in a Manhattan court on Thursday.
