By Paul Joseph
U.S. authorities have launched a manhunt for a Nigerian national, Emuobosan Emanuella Hall, after she failed to report to prison to begin serving an eight-year sentence for her role in a romance fraud and money laundering scheme.
Hall, 45, a permanent resident based in Atlanta, Georgia, was ordered to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons by March 25, 2026, but never showed up, prompting federal investigators to declare her wanted.
According to prosecutors, she was sentenced in January 2026 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering. The case stemmed from a coordinated romance scam operation that primarily targeted older women online.
Authorities say Hall was granted bond ahead of her incarceration but violated court conditions when she failed to report. Her last confirmed location was the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on March 24, where her electronic monitoring device stopped transmitting.
Although she told her probation officer she was traveling to Minnesota to surrender, flight records later showed she never boarded the aircraft. Investigators also traced her phone activity suggesting possible movement toward Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C., raising suspicions she deliberately absconded.
Prosecutors allege Hall worked alongside co-conspirator Kenneth G. Akpieyi to defraud victims through elaborate online deception. The pair reportedly posed as military officers, philanthropists, and business executives to gain trust on social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram.
Victims were later moved to encrypted messaging apps such as WhatsApp, where fake romantic relationships were cultivated and money was solicited under false claims including medical emergencies and charitable causes.
Court documents indicate Hall used a company, Le Beau Monde LLC, to launder proceeds from the scheme. She admitted to personally defrauding victims of $851,207, while Akpieyi was linked to losses exceeding $3.5 million. He was convicted at trial and is currently serving a 25-year prison sentence.
U.S. Attorney David I. Courcelle condemned Hall’s disappearance, calling it a blatant disregard for the law.
If apprehended and convicted for failing to surrender, Hall could face an additional sentence of up to 10 years, to run consecutively with her existing term, along with a potential fine of up to $250,000.
The FBI has urged the public to provide any information that could assist in locating her, as the case highlights the growing threat of transnational romance fraud schemes targeting vulnerable victims online.
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