Woodberry, Hushpuppi’s Ally, Sentenced To 8 Years In Prison By US Court; To Be Deported After Jail Term - Lejit Reporters

Woodberry, Hushpuppi’s Ally, Sentenced To 8 Years In Prison By US Court; To Be Deported After Jail Term - Lejit Reporters

Woodberry, Hushpuppi’s Ally, Sentenced To 8 Years In Prison By US Court; To Be Deported After Jail Term - Lejit Reporters

A United States Federal Judge has sentenced Jacob Olalekan Ponle, popularly known as Mr. Woodberry, to eight years and three months in prison for his coordination of a multimillion-dollar fraud.

Lejit Reporters had reported that Woodberry, an internet fraudster and an ally of the convicted internet fraud kingpin, Ramon Abbas popularly known as Hushpuppi, had pleaded guilty to count one of the eight counts brought against him in the US.

He further agreed to surrender $8 million in proceeds of wire fraud as well as luxury cars and watches to the foreign government.

However, according to a court filing obtained by Peoples Gazette, Woodberry was sentenced on July 11 by Justice Robert Gettleman of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago to eight years and three months in jail.

“The defendant is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to be imprisoned for a total term of 100 months as to count,” Mr Gettleman said.

Mr. Ponle was sentenced after being convicted on one count of fraud. Seven other counts were dismissed following a plea bargain in April that was previously reported by The Gazette.

Mr. Gettleman ordered Woodberry to submit himself to the US Marshal Service for onward transfer to the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut, where his family members, especially his American fiancée, would be allowed to visit him.

Woodberry will also be “surrendered to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody for deportation immediately following his incarceration," the judge said.

The Nigerian-born fraudster will pay seven victims about $8 million in restitution, with the court finding that he can make the full payment but waived all interests on the restitution value.

American prosecutors on June 29 asked the judge to sentence, Woodberry to 14 years in prison for the fraud he committed between January and September 2019.