Ghanaian National Sentenced to Over 7 Years in U.S. Prison for Role in $100 Million International Romance Scam
The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, has announced that Derrick Van Yeboah, also known as “Van,” has been sentenced to 85 months (more than seven years) in federal prison for his role in a sophisticated international fraud network that stole more than $100 million from victims through romance scams and business email compromise (BEC) schemes.
The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian after Van Yeboah pleaded guilty on March 5, 2026, to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton condemned the devastating impact of romance scams, stating that such criminals do more than steal money—they exploit trust, loneliness, and genuine human relationships for financial gain.
“Romance scammers do not simply steal money—they weaponize trust,” Clayton said. “Van Yeboah and his co-conspirators exploited trust, loneliness, and legitimate business relationships to steal more than $100 million. Today’s sentence reflects the seriousness of these calculated frauds and our commitment to pursuing international criminal organizations that target Americans.”
According to court documents and prosecutors, Van Yeboah was a member of a criminal organisation primarily based in Ghana that orchestrated romance scams and business email compromise attacks targeting individuals and businesses across the United States.
Many of the victims were elderly and vulnerable men and women who were manipulated into believing they were in genuine online romantic relationships. Members of the syndicate created fake identities and spent months gaining the victims’ trust before convincing them to send large sums of money or unknowingly help launder proceeds obtained from other victims.
The organisation also carried out business email compromise (BEC) schemes, deceiving companies into transferring funds to bank accounts controlled by the criminal network.
Authorities said the conspiracy ultimately stole and laundered more than $100 million from dozens of victims before transferring the proceeds to West Africa.
Prosecutors said Van Yeboah personally played a significant role in several romance scams by pretending to be romantic partners communicating with victims online.
In one scheme between 2019 and 2020, he used fake identities to deceive women from Ohio and Delaware, persuading them to transfer approximately $4.2 million to accounts controlled by members of the criminal organisation.
In another case in 2024, Van Yeboah allegedly targeted a man in North Carolina, convincing him to send approximately $123,000 after falsely claiming he needed financial assistance for a parent’s funeral and to recover gold and diamonds from Italy.
For sentencing purposes, the court held Van Yeboah responsible for more than $10 million obtained from victims through the romance scams he personally carried out.
In addition to his 85-month prison sentence, the 41-year-old Ghanaian was sentenced to two years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. The court also ordered him to forfeit $10,149,429.17, representing proceeds linked to his criminal activities.
The successful prosecution followed extensive international cooperation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)led the investigation, while the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs worked closely with the International Cooperation Unit of Ghana’s Office of the Attorney-General to secure Van Yeboah’s extradition to the United States on August 7, 2025.
Authorities also acknowledged the critical assistance provided by Ghana’s Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the Ghana Police Service–INTERPOL, the Cyber Security Authority, and the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) in facilitating his extradition.
The case was prosecuted by the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Mead and Mitzi Steiner leading the prosecution.
