2 Nigerians, Sudanese Woman Jailed in US Over Romance Scam That Drove Retired Teacher to Suicide

Two Nigerian men and a Sudanese woman have been handed lengthy prison sentences in the United States for their roles in a complex online romance scam that resulted in the suicide of a 74-year-old retired teacher in Tennessee.

The trio — Salma Abdalkareem, 29, and Chinagorom Onwumere, 36, both of Piscataway, New Jersey, along with Stephen O. Anagor, 37, of Lakewood, Washington — were sentenced on December 2, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Clifton L. Corker of the Eastern District of Tennessee.

According to a statement issued by the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday, Abdalkareem was sentenced to 51 months in prison, Onwumere received 84 months, while Anagor was given the longest term of 108 months.
After serving their sentences, Abdalkareem will undergo three years of supervised release, while Onwumere and Anagor will each serve five years. All three were also ordered to pay $388,500 in restitution to their victims.

Prosecutors said the elderly victim from Jonesborough, Tennessee, was manipulated into believing he was in an online romantic relationship with a celebrity. The scammers claimed he faced legal trouble from a fabricated sexual harassment allegation and extracted $87,500 from him through gift cards and checks.
Following a series of threatening emails from Onwumere and Abdalkareem, the victim, emotionally distressed and financially drained, died by suicide on October 23, 2023.

Court filings show that Anagor and Onwumere, both Nigerian nationals, met during military training in South Carolina in 2023. Working with accomplices in Nigeria, they—alongside Abdalkareem, a Sudanese citizen and Onwumere’s wife—executed a coordinated scheme targeting elderly Americans.

The scammers impersonated celebrities and senior U.S. government officials, including a former FBI Director and a former Attorney General, to coerce victims into paying supposed fees for taxes, background checks, or “exclusive access.”
Victims were misled into believing they were interacting with federal law enforcement and were threatened with investigations or public exposure unless they complied.

Once payments were made, the U.S.-based conspirators — including the three defendants — received the funds, kept part of the proceeds, and forwarded the rest to partners in Nigeria.

In the Tennessee case, the victim depleted his life savings — including funds from a loan taken against his truck — before being told he owed further “medical bills” allegedly incurred by the celebrity he thought he was dating. In his final messages, he told the scammers he had no more money and intended to end his life.

Investigators said the scheme targeted multiple victims across the United States and relied on the stolen identities of at least four celebrities and several top federal officials.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID), and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mac D. Heavener III prosecuted the matter.

The Justice Department described the sentencing as a major step in dismantling transnational fraud networks exploiting vulnerable Americans.