Mr. Osmond Eweka, the Oba of Benin’s in-law was arrested on charges of fraud after he was accused of scamming hundreds of job seekers out of thousands of dollars by promising them high-paying jobs in New York.
Eweka, 31, who is a prince in the Benin royal family in Nigeria, along with his friend Kamel McKay, 27, allegedly pretended to run two consulting firms in Manhattan telling clients that if they paid a fee they would be placed at various jobs across New York City.
According to prosecutors, some of the jobs Eweka and his accomplice promised their victims were for hotel housekeeping and front desk receptionists.
The men used the popular job-seeking website Indeed.com to find their victims.
The Oba of Benin’s in-law appeared before a judge in a Manhattan court on Thursday and he pleaded guilty to larceny and scheme to defraud.
Court documents indicated that Eweka and McKay used office space in the Empire State Building and another building on fifth avenue to run two bogus employment agency firms, Stamford Consulting Firm and Howard Consulting Group.
The New York post reports that Eweka and his accomplice used fake names. Eweka went by the name Sean Jackson and McKay reportedly used the name Tyrone Hayes.
The duo would reportedly get victims to come to their office for an interview and they were then made to pay a fee (usually between $300 and $700) and promise them jobs.
Prosecutor Catherine McCaw speaking at the Oba of Benin’s in-law’s arraignment said: ‘But in reality, there was no such job,’
The victims were then sent to different businesses who sent them away as there were actually no openings in these firms.
Eweka and McKay reportedly duped 250 people and didn’t get a legitimate job for a single individual.
According to the New York Times, McKay was arraigned last week and released on $200,000 bail.
Ewaka married Imade Igbenedion, the granddaughter of Sir Gabriel Igbenedion in a huge wedding in 2016.
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