Three people have pleaded guilty in an international romance-fraud network that caused more than $9 million in losses, federal prosecutors in Ohio announced October 26. The prosecutor’s account describes victims across the United States and abroad, most of them older Americans, deceived by relationships built through dating websites and social media.

Twin brothers Jamal and Kamal Abubakari, both 22 and from Ghana, pleaded guilty October 13 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Amanda Joy Opoku-Boachie, 53, of Kula, Hawaii, pleaded guilty October 20 to the same charge. The announcement is new; the pleas occurred earlier this month. This report relies on that authoritative announcement for the case-specific facts, rather than an independently reviewed set of plea transcripts.

Prosecutors described a scheme operating approximately from July 2024 through April 2026. False identities and invented personal stories induced victims to wire money into accounts controlled by conspiracy members. Some funds then moved to Ghana and elsewhere. Victims included northern Ohio residents and people in 24 other states, Germany and Austria. The announcement also described agreed jewelry forfeitures; it did not establish that victims had received repayment.

A case within a larger pattern

The FTC’s report on older consumers supplies a separate national perspective. Adults 60 and older reported approximately $3 billion in fraud losses in 2025, roughly five times the amount reported in 2020. Those figures cover fraud broadly, not just romance scams, and are not an estimate of the Ohio network’s losses.

The commission found that older adults reported losing money to fraud at lower rates than younger adults, while those who did lose money reported higher median losses. Among people 80 and older, the median reported loss was $2,000. That distinction matters: higher losses do not establish that every older person is more likely to be deceived.

Romance scams were among the categories in which older adults were more likely than younger adults to report a loss. The findings describe reports submitted to the Consumer Sentinel Network. They should be read as reported experiences, rather than a complete count of every scam or victim.

Social platforms provide an opening

A separate FTC analysis found that nearly 60% of people reporting a romance-scam loss in 2025 said the contact began on social media. The calculation excludes reports without an identified contact method. It does not mean that 60% of social-media users experienced such a scam.

The agency described offenders adapting their stories to information on a person’s profile, then introducing a purported emergency or an investment opportunity. Its findings show why the warning signs extend beyond a dating app: an ordinary social contact can become a financial approach. Investment platforms showing apparent profits may themselves be fabricated. The FTC also warned of secondary scams in which someone offers to recover lost funds for a fee.

The relationship can be the mechanism

The FBI’s guidance explains the underlying confidence trick: an invented identity wins affection and trust before requests for money begin. Promises of marriage or meetings can coexist with repeated excuses for remaining unavailable. Claimed overseas work can make both the absence and an alleged emergency appear plausible.

The bureau recommends checking profile photographs and biographical details through online searches, moving slowly, and being wary of pressure to leave the original platform. Attempts to isolate someone from friends or family, demands for financial information, and repeated failures to meet are additional warning signs. A compelling personal story is not independent verification of identity.

Its central recommendation is direct: do not send money to someone known only through online or telephone contact. The FBI also cautions that a request to use a person’s bank account to receive money can involve other theft or fraud. These are general prevention warnings, not additional allegations against the defendants in the Ohio case.

Responding before more money moves

For longer-term protection, the CFPB’s resources emphasize planning with a trusted contact and a bank or credit union. The agency also provides guidance for caregivers and financial institutions, whose staff may notice suspicious activity. It notes that losses can be especially damaging when someone has limited ability to earn the money back.

If a payment has already been sent, FTC recovery guidance recommends contacting the relevant bank, payment app, transfer company or card issuer immediately, reporting the fraud and requesting reversal or reimbursement. The appropriate contact depends on how the money moved. A request for help is not a guarantee of recovery.

If account credentials were disclosed, the FTC also recommends changing the affected password, changing it on other accounts where it was reused, and enabling two-factor authentication. Financial recovery and account security require separate attention.

The FBI advises ending contact with the suspected scammer and reporting the matter to its Internet Crime Complaint Center. The FTC accepts reports through ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Criminal guilty pleas and forfeiture announcements mark enforcement progress; they should not be mistaken for proof that every victim has been made whole.