Las Vegas Man Sentenced To Prison After Carrying Out Mail Forwarding And Identity Theft Scheme

LAS VEGAS – A Las Vegas resident was sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Andrew P. Gordon to three years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for participating in a scheme that victimized nearly 400 people by redirecting their mail, stealing the victims’ identities, and using bank accounts in the victims’ names without their consent.

In March 2022, after a two-day trial, Nosa Frank Obayando (31) was found guilty of mail theft, using an unauthorized access device, and aggravated identity theft.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) was alerted to a fraudulent mail forwarding scheme. An investigation found that between February 2017 and February 2018, Obayando and a co-defendant worked together to steal mail through a fraudulent forwarding scheme where hundreds of victims from around the country had their mail forwarded without their knowledge or consent to addresses under Obayando and the co-defendant’s control. As part of the scheme, Obayando and the co-defendant checked the mailboxes for fraudulently-forwarded mail, then used the identities in that mail to steal funds from bank accounts.

United States Attorney Jason M. Frierson for the District of Nevada made the announcement.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS). Assistant United States Attorney Tony Lopez prosecuted the case.

If you suspect potential mail fraud or mail theft, you may contact the USPIS by calling 877-876-2455 or by making a report online at https://www.uspis.gov/report.

###