Jamal Abubakari and Kamal Abubakari, both 22 years old, operated under the online aliases "Arrangement" and "Lancaster" respectively, when they executed an elaborate wire fraud network.
Standing alongside them in the federal court case was their 53-year-old American accomplice, Amanda Joy Opoku-Boachie—also known by aliases such as Amanda Joy Glum and Amanda Joy Kessei Bierman—who resided in Hawaii.
According to court documents and official statements from the United States Department of Justice, the criminal operation spanned from July 2024 to April 2026.
The network systematically targeted older Americans through social media platforms and online dating websites. Members of the syndicate fabricated convincing fake identities to build intimate, trusting relationships with unsuspecting victims, often masquerading as genuine romantic partners.
Once emotional trust was established, the perpetrators deployed deceptive stories to persuade victims to wire substantial sums of money into financial accounts controlled by syndicate members. A significant portion of these stolen funds was subsequently funneled to co-conspirators stationed in Ghana and other international destinations.
The scheme affected victims across 25 US states—including residents of Edgerton in Williams County, northern Ohio—as well as individuals living in Germany and Austria, accumulating total financial losses exceeding US$9 million.On October 13, 2026, the Abubakari twins formally pleaded guilty before a United States federal court to "conspiracy to commit wire fraud".
Their American co-conspirator, Opoku-Boachie, entered her guilty plea to the same charge shortly after on October 20, 2026. As part of their negotiated plea agreements, all three defendants agreed to forfeit an array of luxury items seized by authorities during their arrests, including high-end watches, rings, chains, medallions, and expensive earrings.
The prosecution was spearheaded by the Cleveland Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) alongside the US Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs under the US Department of Justice's Elder Justice Initiative.
Crucially, the investigation relied heavily on extensive inter-agency cooperation with Ghanaian security institutions, including the Attorney-General's Office, the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the Ghana Police Service, the Cyber Security Authority, the Narcotics Control Commission, the Financial Intelligence Centre, the Ghana Immigration Service, and the National Intelligence Bureau. Each defendant now faces a maximum statutory penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison.
The Abubakari brothers are scheduled to be sentenced on February 9, 2027, while Opoku-Boachie will receive her sentence on February 10, 2027, with final prison terms to be determined by a federal judge under the US Sentencing Guidelines.
The guilty pleas of Jamal and Kamal Abubakari underscore the swift consequences awaiting perpetrators of global online fraud, highlighting that online anonymity is an illusion.
This outcome demonstrates the power of joint operations between Ghanaian security agencies and US federal authorities in safeguarding innocent victims from financial ruin.
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