A Maryland resident has been sentenced to two years and two months in federal prison for participating in a scheme that defrauded banks of at least $930,000 using stolen identities. The sentencing took place in Alexandria, Virginia. Last week, a co-defendant received a three-year prison sentence for his role in the same conspiracy.
Court records indicate that Akinsegun Oyekunle, 44, and Rasheed Olalekan Williams, 51—who had previously been convicted of identity theft—carried out the fraud by impersonating victims and posing as representatives of legitimate manufacturing and trucking companies. They used these false identities to steal funds from those businesses.
Oyekunle registered fictitious businesses with the Virginia State Corporation Commission and obtained fraudulent IRS identification numbers for them. Williams then opened multiple bank accounts under these business names. Both men acted as company representatives while carrying out their activities.
On at least six occasions, Williams deposited stolen or forged checks into these corporate accounts. The checks were often meant for the real businesses being impersonated. The conspirators quickly withdrew money from ATMs or transferred funds before banks noticed irregularities. Authorities found that they had impersonated at least five individuals, including one deceased person, by obtaining personal information, opening fake bank accounts, and creating fraudulent identification documents.
Investigators recovered an electronic ledger containing victims’ details in Oyekunle’s possession along with several debit cards issued in victims’ names. Williams was arrested separately while carrying a fake driver’s license and debit card linked to the scheme.
Both men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud earlier this year: Williams on April 9 and Oyekunle on April 22. Williams was sentenced on August 7 to three years in prison; Oyekunle received his sentence today.
“Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles.”
“Assistant U.S. Attorney Avi Panth prosecuted the case. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth R. Simon Jr. provided substantial assistance to the prosecution.”
Further information about this case can be found through public records from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia (https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva), or through court documents available via PACER by searching Case Nos. 1:25-cr-97 (Williams) and 1:25-cr-104 (Oyekunle) (https://pacer.uscourts.gov/).
