Romance fraudster who scammed over £400,000 from victims jailed

A romance fraudster who conned 80 victims out of significant sums of money has today been jailed.

Fredrick Ugo Diji, 37, was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment at Guildford Crown Court on 23 December 2022 after he admitted conspiracy to defraud, concealing criminal property and possession of an identity document for improper means.

Co-defendant Raquel Janice Johnson, 43, who lived with Diji in Lambeth, South London, appeared alongside him in court and was sentenced to three years and nine months imprisonment after admitting one count of money laundering.

Diji almost exclusively targeted gay men for his fraud, though there were some examples of victims who believed they were speaking to a woman. Many of the victims were also older or suffered with poor health. 

The fraud involved Diji initiating contact with his victims via online dating sites, using fake profiles, and engaging with them via chat messages and telephone calls, with victims involved believing they were engaging with a genuine person. 

Diji would ‘love bomb’ victims with attention and affection to gain their trust and would then ask them for money for a number of different fictitious reasons. Lies included him telling them his mother was sick abroad, had subsequently died and that money was needed to pay for funeral costs and assist in acquiring their inheritance.

In some cases, he even sent false documents including death certificates, travel documentation and identification documents to support his stories before pressuring victims to transfer him money. These false documents were found on devices seized from the address shared by Diji and Johnson.

The fraudster would often tell victims that he just needed the money to be loaned to him, however no victims ever received any money back.

Diji’s fraudulent behaviour took place over an extended period of time between January 2005 and April 2021 and a review of chats and emails on devices seized revealed a total of 80 victims of romance fraud.

One victim had been defrauded over a period of 14 years, during which they paid Diji more than £100,000.         

Johnson assisted Diji’s offending by laundering money he had fraudulently gained from victims through her own bank account between January 2018 and April 2021.

A total of £426,311.68 was obtained through fraud and evidence showed that both defendants spent the money gained on personal living expenditures such as on takeaways, gym memberships, groceries, and private dental care.

Jane Mitchell, Specialist Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Romance fraud is a horrendous crime and the cost to individual victims goes well beyond financial loss.

“It is despicable that Diji targeted men either because of their sexuality, age or poor health in order to defraud them.  

“The victims in this case were looking for genuine love and companionship and Diji acted with greed and callousness to take advantage and emotionally manipulate them, persuading them to hand over their money.

“Johnson was complicit and assisted Diji’s offending, laundering money he had fraudulently gained from victims through her own bank account.

“We will be pursuing the defendants’ criminal gains through the Proceeds of Crime Act.”

Detective Constable Becky Mason, who investigated the case, said: “Romance fraud is heartless and cowardly and has a devastating impact on victims, not only financially but emotionally as they find their trust has been exploited in the cruellest of ways.

“Diji and Johnston had their routine down to a tee – they would work together using a number of fake personas to find victims online, love-bomb them with promises of meeting in person and declarations of love, before fabricating reasons for desperately needing money, telling the victims that if they really loved them they would help them out.

“It was the ultimate manipulation which preyed on people’s emotions and good nature.

“I am incredibly grateful to each of the victims for supporting our investigation and I hope that today’s result gives them some sense of justice.”

Anyone speaking to someone they do not know or have not been in contact with for a long time is urged to follow the ‘Take Five To Stop Fraud’ advice. Members of the public are encouraged to:

1. Stop and think before parting with your money or information in order to keep you safe;
2. Challenge whether the information or request you have received could be fake. It is ok to reject, refuse or ignore any requests as only criminals will try to rush or panic you; 
3. Protect yourself by reporting any scams you think you have fallen for to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 and to your bank immediately.

The CPS is committed to working alongside the government and law enforcement to provide a multi-agency response to combat romance fraud. CPS prosecutors work to seek justice in a variety of cases including those that cause the greatest harm to the public especially vulnerable victims.

If you think you have been a victim of a romance scam, do not feel ashamed or embarrassed - you are not alone. Contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or online.