Former U.S. War Department Employee Charged in Multimillion-Dollar Money Laundering Scheme

A former War Department employee has been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged multimillion-dollar money laundering operation linked to Nigeria-based fraud schemes, federal prosecutors announced Monday.

U.S. Attorney David Metcalf said Samuel Marcus, 33, of Oreland, Pennsylvania, was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, six counts of illegal monetary transactions, and one count of money laundering involving illegal concealment.

Prosecutors allege Marcus acted as a money mule for an international fraud network that laundered millions of dollars stolen from U.S.-based victims. According to the indictment, Marcus participated in the scheme from about July 2023 through last December while employed as a logistics specialist with the War Department. During that period, he was allegedly in regular contact with Nigeria-based fraudsters operating under aliases — including “Rachel Jude” and “Ned McMurray.”

Federal prosecutors said the fraudsters carried out multiple wire fraud schemes targeting victims in the U.S. — including romance scams, cyberfraud, tax fraud, financing fraud, and business email compromise schemes. Victims collectively lost millions of dollars, according to the indictment.

The fraud network relied on a group of money mules in the U.S. to launder the proceeds, instructing victims to transfer funds into accounts controlled by the mules. Prosecutors allege Marcus opened and operated several of those accounts and, under the direction of the fraudsters, conducted rapid transactions to convert stolen funds into cryptocurrency and move them into foreign accounts.

The indictment alleges Marcus personally deposited and transferred millions of dollars of fraudulently obtained funds through his personal and business accounts while knowing the money originated from criminal activity. Prosecutors further allege that Marcus misled financial institutions and law enforcement by providing false explanations for the transactions and submitting fraudulent invoices to make the transfers appear legitimate.

Authorities allege Marcus continued working as a money mule even after FBI agents warned him that the funds moving through his accounts had been stolen and that his transactions were consistent with money laundering. If convicted on all counts, Marcus faces a maximum potential sentence of up to 100 years in prison, three years of supervised release and fines totaling up to $2 million.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Philadelphia Field Office, Fort Washington Resident Agency, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the War Department’s Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel Dalke.