Smith County Woman Defrauded out of $17,000

SMITH COUNTY — A Smith County resident was scammed out of $17,000 after a New Jersey woman claimed to be a family member asking for money. According to our news partner KETK, In September, a woman reported being contacted through Facebook who identified themselves as a family member. The person then convinced the victim that she was eligible to receive a grant from the United Nations Democracy Fund Program. Over the several weeks of communication, the victim sent a total of $17,000 to the suspect with the promise of getting a check for $75,000.

When she did not receive payment, she contacted her family member and was made aware of the scam. Smith County authorities were able to track down the the identity of the suspect. Jumoke Monsurat Ayedun, 29, of New Jersey. Ayedun was found to be a Nigerian National who is in the U.S. on a visa. A warrant for Ayeden’s arrest was made for the criminal offense of theft from the elderly and a bond of $1,000,000 was set. Ayeden was arrested Monday and is currently awaiting extradition to Smith County. Law enforcement urges individuals to be vigilant of any type of unknown correspondence and if you are the victim of such a scam, contact the Smith County Sheriff’s Office at (903) 566-6600.