Nigerian entrepreneur and a Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 honoree Obiwanne Okeke has pleaded not guilty to two counts of wire and computer fraud of about $11m fraud at his first hearing on Monday.
United States’ Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said Okeke and at least six other persons were involved in the crimes.
“There is a probable cause to believe Okeke has conspired with several individuals to access computers without authorisation and using such access to cause the fraudulent wire transfer of funds,” FBI’s special agent Marshall Ward said in an affidavit he deposed to before Justice Lawrence Leonard, in Norfolk, Virginia, on August 2.
At the commencement of the hearing on Monday, the presiding judge at the Newport News, Virginia, federal courthouse, described the case as “complex,” but said Okeke should be remanded in prison until February 18, 2020, when the trial would continue.
By the time he returns to court in February 2020, he would have spent six months behind bars, and could still spend more time in the course of the trial.
The appearance came a week after a federal grand jury examined the evidence gathered by the FBI and presented by the United States Department of Justice and found Okeke guilty as charged and recommended him for trial.
The grand jury ordered that Okeke should be made to forfeit at least $11 million in asset and an emerald shaped diamond engagement ring found on him when he was first arrested by federal agents as he was about leaving the U.S. on August 6.