Two romance scammers have been sentenced to three years in federal prison for their role in a large-scale wire fraud scheme, officials say.
Emanuel Stanley Orji, 36, was sentenced Monday to 37 months in prison for conspiracy to committ wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas. Orji's brother, 38-year-old Frederick Orji, pleaded guilty to the same crime and received the same sentence last month.
Officials said the brothers have ties to a "Nigerian organized crime syndicate" and preyed on women who were either widowed or divorced, using fake names on dating sites like Match.com and Bumble.
According to investigators, once they got close to their victims, they would come up with sob stories about why they needed money and would empty their victims' bank accounts.
Five other defendants charged with wire fraud will go to trial on March 20.
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