Fourth person indicted in business scheme that stole $4M from Lexington
A fourth person involved in a broad scheme to defraud the city of Lexington of nearly $4 million after posing as a nonprofit has been indicted in federal court.
Kadi Isatu Jalloh was indicted Wednesday in Eastern District Federal Court on a charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Jalloh was allegedly a co-conspirator alongside four others who helped steal millions from the city government while acting as a local nonprofit.
In August 2022, co-conspirators emailed the city pretending to be from the Community Action Council, convincing an official to wire money owed to the nonprofit organization into an account at Truist Bank that belonged to the conspirators, according to court documents.
Truist Bank and Lexington were able to recover all the city’s money, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Jalloh was hired as part of a network of individuals to operate bank accounts under stolen identities in shell company names that either directly received money from victims or received funds from their accounts, according to the latest indictment.
People involved in the scam posed as nonprofit organizations or vendors and contacted cities, businesses and individuals and tricked them into sending payments, according to court records. The tactic is known as a business email compromise scheme.
In October 2020, Jalloh and others had an unnamed victim wire nearly $100,000 to a bank account in the name of Boyes G. Development Group, a company formed in Virginia and registered to Jalloh’s address. She then wrote a $25,000 check to a jewelry company, $30,000 check to another company she managed and a third in the amount of $15,000, according to the indictment.
Jalloh faces up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $500,000. She is scheduled to be arraigned Friday, Dec. 5.
Others in the scheme
Nana Kwabena Amuah, a 30-year-old Ghana native, was sentenced to seven years in prison in November 2023. He was said to be the leader of the crime operation.
Amuah pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in June 2023. He originally faced an additional charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, but the charge was dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
He was indicted in January, according to court documents. In addition to the prison time, he was ordered to pay more than $4.7 million in restitution. He is one of five co-conspirators alleged to have targeted nearly 70 business or municipal entities across the country.
Shimea Maret McDonald, of Texas, was sentenced in January 2024 to serve six years and eight months in federal prison. She pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and aggravated theft.
McDonald testified that without Amuah, she wouldn’t have known what to do, and he physically abused her in some instances, which caused her to participate under duress.
Jean Mejia-Garcia, of New Jersey, worked alongside Amuah and McDonald since 2021, according to court documents. He pleaded guilty to a money laundering conspiracy and aggravated indentity theft.
Mejia-Garcia was sentenced in August 2024, but his sentencing documents are sealed.
A fifth co-conspirator was mentioned in Jalloh’s indictment, but was not named.
