Hajia4Reall, a prominent social media influencer from Ghana, has been extradited from the United Kingdom to the United States on allegations of defrauding over $2 million from older, single Americans in a deceitful romance scam, as stated by federal prosecutors on Monday.
Mona Faiz Montrage, a 30-year-old resident of Accra, Ghana, appeared in a Manhattan federal court on Monday, accused of participating in a series of romance schemes that targeted elderly individuals living alone, according to prosecutors.
Pleading not guilty to the charges, Montrage is expected to be released to her aunt's residence in New Jersey in the upcoming days, with home detention and a $500,000 bond, which includes GPS tracking through an ankle monitor, confirmed by both her lawyer and the prosecutor's office.
Between 2013 and 2019, Montrage, who at one point had approximately 3.4 million Instagram followers on her page Hajia4Reall, was allegedly involved with a group of fraudsters from West Africa.
They assumed false identities to deceive individuals into believing they were engaged in relationships through emails, texts, and social media messages, according to the federal authorities.
Overall, the group managed to scam $2 million from victims, which Montrage received in her bank accounts located in the Bronx and other places, including an account under the name of 4Reall Designs, a purported clothing company.
Furthermore, she allegedly laundered the money to other members of the criminal enterprise, as stated in the indictment.
Prosecutors claim that Montrage deceived one person into believing they were married and convinced them to send her $89,000.
“In this case, Mona Faiz Montrage was part of a criminal conspiracy that specifically targeted older Americans through romance scams,” said Damian Williams, the Manhattan US Attorney, in a statement.
He added, “These scams can have both financial and emotional consequences for vulnerable victims. Thanks to the efforts of our law enforcement partners, Montrage was apprehended overseas and has been brought to the United States to face justice.”
The social media influencer, whose Instagram account was one of the top 10 most followed in Ghana, was arrested in the UK on November 10, 2022, for her alleged involvement in the conspiracy, and she was subsequently brought to the US on Friday.
Montrage is facing charges of wire fraud, money laundering, receipt of stolen money, and conspiracy, carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison if convicted of the top charge.
Adam Cortez, Montrage's lawyer, stated, “At this time all we know is that there are six alleged victims, and only two of them had dealings with a woman, with only one of them claiming that he had dealt with Ms Montrage.” Cortez further explained that he cannot provide additional comments until he receives more information and evidence from the prosecutors.
The lawyer mentioned that his client is restricted to specific areas of New York and New Jersey while awaiting the progress of her case.
