NAIJA CELEBRITY GOSSIP

'The Nigerian Boy Who Conquered America': The King of Home Equity Fraud

2011-01-28T09:46:00.000-08:00

Tobechi Onwuhara (right) at a Dallas nightclub with Ezenwa Onyedebelu. Courtesy: FBI.

A luxury suite at the W Hotel in Dallas is as good a place as any to conquer the world. At least it seemed that way in 2007 when Tobechi Onwuhara got the crew together. They'd meet there often, seven or eight of them. Some had nicknames from the Ian Fleming lexicon: C, Q, and E. Others were called Mookie, Orji, Uche. They would spread out on designer sofas and at the wet bar, open three-ring binders, and fire up laptops with hard-to-trace wireless cards. On a nearby table there'd be prepaid cellphones with area codes taped to them. A phone for Southern California. A phone for Northern Virginia. A phone for any place Onwuhara had found the "good money."

In those days, the good money wasn't hard to find. The housing boom had flooded the country with capital. Lenders were making promiscuous loans to unsophisticated borrowers. It was an ideal environment for Onwuhara, 27, a brilliant, pug-faced visionary who favored True Religion jeans and Ed Hardy shirts. Looking out over the neon skyline of downtown Dallas, it was easy for the crew to believe his assurances: He'd make them rich. When the sun glinted off one of his $100,000 diamond-encrusted Audemars Piguet watches, who could doubt it? Every few months he would buy a new Maserati or Bentley. He owned expensive properties in Miami, Dallas, and Phoenix. He even had a secret love condo in the W, where scantily clad women visited in such numbers that one bellhop became convinced that the first-generation Nigerian-American was a porn director.

The truth was very different. In his ancestral homeland, Onwuhara might have been a chief. In America he became one of the world's most successful cyberscammers, a criminal genius who used his talents to filet a poorly regulated banking and credit system. In less than three years Onwuhara stole a confirmed $44 million, according to the FBI, which believes the total may be anywhere from $80 million to $100 million. All he needed was an Internet connection and a cellphone.

Onwuhara called it "washing." He'd set up a boiler room in a fancy hotel (the Waldorf-Astoria was another favorite) to wash information on wealthy victims. Then he'd wash bank accounts. One group in his crew would do online research using databases and websites to harvest names, dates of birth, and mortgage information. They'd build profiles of victims for a second group, who would call banks posing as account holders. The callers cadged security information and passwords. Then Onwuhara would breach the accounts and wire funds from them to a network of money mules he had established in Asia. The money would be laundered and wired back to his accounts in the U.S.

"I call it modern-day bank robbery," says FBI special agent Michael Nail. "You can sit at home in your PJs and slippers with a laptop, and you can actually rob a bank."

Onwuhara specialized in hitting home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), the reservoirs of cash that banks make available to homeowners. Once Onwuhara gained access to a HELOC, he could siphon out vast sums in seconds. His weapon was persuasion. It got him enough money to start building a colonnaded fortress in Nigeria; enough to gamble at the high-stakes tables in Vegas casinos all night. Even his accomplices appear not to have known how much he was really pulling down -- not even his beautiful fianc

View the Original article

Who knows why Mercy Johnson is not yet Married???

2011-01-28T09:16:00.000-08:00

1/27/2011 1:59:01 AM Its only in Nigeria that a celebrity can grace a cover page with such face. Mercy Johnson is way better than that.....just look at the lips....i dont like this pic at all. Reply this thread

View the Original article

PICTURES: BEHIND THE SCENE, The making of Omo Ghetto part 2 by Funke akindele

2011-01-28T08:46:00.000-08:00

1/28/2011 2:14:56 AM Hot mess, the part 1 was so so disappointing and to think i also publicized it on my FB and Twitter page yikess. The hot mess started when the plot changed to the typical twins story and there was a traditional twins sacrifice that they should have done to prevent the crisis and now a part 2 sorry never gon waste money on it. Like how many times would they flog that storyline? Reply this thread

View the Original article

What Really Ails Sikiratu Sindodo?

2011-01-28T08:16:00.000-08:00

Sikiratu Sindodo

Although ailing Yoruba actress, Tayo Odueke, a.k.a. Sikiratu Sindodo has denied been down with a kidney-related ailment, sources close to her said she is lying about it.

The source buttressed that Sindodo, who has lost a lot of weight now, is actually suffering from a kidney-related ailment, not malaria-typhoid as being claimed by the actress.

View the Original article

Eyo Festival Holds February 5

2011-01-28T07:46:00.000-08:00

s Eyo Festival which will hold on Saturday, February 5 2011. This was confirmed by the Chairman of the festival planning committee, Mr. Disu Holloway.

View the Original article

Ibinabo in court for prisoners

2011-01-28T07:16:00.000-08:00

s since moved on with her life after her traumatic experience has returned to the Kirikiri maximum prison to extend a hand of help to the prisoners.

The actress, was in a Lagos High court during the week to demand for justice for two prisoners whom she said have been standing trial for the past five years without any evidence to persecute their cases.

Ibinabo, disclosed that she is working with a team of lawyers who are assisting her in pursuing this noble course. Already, according to her, she has succeeded in setting about two other prisoners free, as she hopes to set more prisoners free in future.

Meanwhile sequel to a duet which she did with Charles Granville on his new album

View the Original article

Warrant Issued For Former American Idol Contestant Chikezie Eze's arrest

2011-01-28T06:46:00.000-08:00

A bench warrant has been issued for the arrest of former American Idol contestant, Nigerian Chikezie Eze, 25, after he failed to show up at a January 14th court hearing in LA regarding his arrest last year, for attempting to buy cologne with a fake credit card!

View the Original article

COPYRIGHT WAR! - COSON DENIES THE BIG LIES FROM WAZOBIA AND COOL FM

2011-01-28T06:16:00.000-08:00

Copyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) has reacted to the information making the rounds that the proprietors of Cool FM and Wazobia FM have denied receiving any letters from either COSON or its solicitors and that they are not aware of the requirement that they should obtain copyright licence from COSON before the broadcast of any music or sound recordings.

Reacting to the information, COSON Chairman, Chief Tony Okoroji said,

View the Original article

Die for love? No way Die for love? No way �Nollywood actress, Nuella Njubigbo

2011-01-28T05:46:00.000-08:00

s journey into Nollywood started three years ago, but the only thing that has changed about her is her attitude to life and its challenges.
Practical, honest and humourous aptly describes this Public Adminstration graduate down memory lane about her rise to fame, how her family shaped her life to become the person she is today and how she handles persistent male admirers. Excerpts:

How did acting start for you?
I started acting in 2007. I wanted to be an actress and I called a family friend on how to go about it. I needed to get an Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) form and he told me where to get it. He directed me in the direction of auditions when it was time and by that time, I was studying Public Administration at Imo State University. I went for auditions and was writing scripts for him too. That was where my journey into Nollywood began. I wrote two scripts before I started acting fully. Writing scripts came before my desire to act.

How do acting and Public Administration relate?
I always wanted to be on screen and my desire was to study Mass Communication in the university. I didn

View the Original article

PICTURES: NAETOC, ICEPRINCE,ELDEE AND OTHERS REGISTERED TO VOTE

2011-01-28T05:16:00.000-08:00

lami and obi asika

Tweet Story by Nigeriafilms.com E-mail Article

Do you have a story/gist for publication? Please email it to story

View the Original article

Adaora Okoh�s Sister Marries

2011-01-28T04:46:00.000-08:00

Wow shez a lovely bride outrightly pretty so also her hubby no wonder her sister Adaora Ukoh is also a pretty woman God bless ur sisters new home I am a big fan of Adaora Ukoh shez a nollywood icon anyday.

View the Original article

The African Woman And Her Hair

2011-01-28T04:16:00.000-08:00

Amara

Recently, I started feeling bad about us, African women. I started this year with so much pain thinking about our long lost African Heritage. We have thrown away our own culture. We have unconsciously embraced the culture of the white man thereby tagging our own

View the Original article

Nigerians mourn film critic, Onyero Mgbejume

2011-01-28T03:46:00.001-08:00

Reactions have continued to trail the death of film critic and former consulting director at the National Film Institute (NFI) Jos, Onyero Mgbejume.Mgbejume, who also taught Film at the University of Jos and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, died last week after an illness.

Managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) Afolabi Adesanya, said,

View the Original article

Drama, as Oleku Video Leaks

2011-01-25T17:56:00.000-08:00

video. Directed by MEX, the video was supposedly leaked a few days ago and received quite a number or views on various YouTube channels and blogs.

Through his twitter page(

View the Original article

PICTURES: Toyin Aimaku is 5months pregnant.

2011-01-25T17:26:00.000-08:00

Toyin is carrying the pregnancy for Kunle Soyombo with grace And elegance as she is everywhere ensuring her new movie Eefa comes out well.
The Director of her new movie Eefa was allowing her more time to take it easy and her collegues are also giving her prefential treatment.

View the Original article

I never thought my marriage could fail�Lepa Shandy

2011-01-25T16:56:00.000-08:00

Lepa Shandy as Shade Omoniyi is called is not giving up on marriage despite a six-year not-too-rosy marriage that packed up in 2010. A second marriage is not the only thing this actress is hoping for.

She wants to be a mother as well. Shade passionately spoke on her broken marriage for the first time and revealed that her not-palatable experience is prompting her to turn marriage counselor to keep others from falling victim.

You have been quiet for a while. What have you been doing?
I

View the Original article

YES, I WALKED OUT OF MY MARRIAGE WITH ABIOLA ---CLARION CHUKWURA

2011-01-25T16:26:00.000-08:00

Inspired by Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor, she featured in her first movie at the tender age of fourteen, Clarion Chukwura obviously has an interesting story to tell about herself when it comes to movie, marriage and social life. Clarion, in this interview with SEGUN ADEBAYO, speaks on her charity organisation, clothing line, marriage break up with Abiola and other sundry issues. Excerpts:

CLARION Chukwura initiative was 10 recently, what has been the story so far?
We support orphanages and motherless babies, using my fans

View the Original article

What's going on Funke Akindele and Femi Adebayo?

2011-01-25T15:56:00.000-08:00

Funke Akindele and Femi Adebayo

Tweet Story by Nigeriafilms.com E-mail Article

Do you have a story/gist for publication? Please email it to story

View the Original article

Gani Adams hosts Yoruba movie producers

2011-01-25T15:26:00.000-08:00

s Congress (OPC), Gani Adams, recently played host to members of the Yoruba Video and Film Marketers and Producers Association of Nigeria (YOVIFPAMAN). At the event, YOVIFPMAN commended Adams for his efforts at projecting good image of Yoruba people at home and in the Diaspora.

The delegation also expressed displeasure at the activities of pirates and the lackadaisical attitude of government and its agencies in the fight against them. In his response, Adams promised to intervene in the matter. Adams, who is the patron of the association, said he would meet with the agencies involved to find lasting solution to the problems enumerated by the association.

He said the association must also create a forum to discuss the issue of $200,000,000 grant released to the entertainment industry and urged the leadership of YOVIFPAMAN to identify ways their members could access the funds. He also called on members of the association to invest in the production of movies that would promote the cultural heritage of Yoruba people.

View the Original article

Why I can show my boobs in movies---Uche Ogbodo

2011-01-25T14:56:00.000-08:00

s a pretty and gorgeous screen goddess who knows her onions in the world of make-believe.

Uche has been in the news in recent times for the wrong reasons. Her nude photographs have continued to grace pages of national newspapers and magazines. While many Nigerians are amazed, the actress has continually denied she was the one in the pictures.

View the Original article

Poverty

2011-01-25T14:26:00.000-08:00

Is there anything like ?
is it when a man is healthy
but not wealthy?
Is it when a man is wealthy
but not healthy?
Is it when a man is a rich-illiterate
but a poor-literate?
Is it when a man has many children
but there is no money to take care of them?
Is it when a man is rich
but has no child?
What you call might be RICHES
to the other man.
Are there not out there financially
rich barren women
who are craving for children?
Are there not out there
financially muscled people
who do not have peace?
Are there not out there people
who are handicapped
but have handwork?
What seems as to you
might be RICHES to the other man.
Is the success of man
determined by how successful
he is financially?
In life, man lags one thing or another
no matter how highly placed.
So, there is no RICH man, no POOR man.
What abound are gluttonous-insatiable persons
or you call them, kleptomaniacs.

View the Original article

I was almost forced out of Nollywood ---Tunde Kelan

2011-01-25T13:56:00.000-08:00

Tunde Kelan

The history of the success so far recorded by the Nigerian entertainment industry will never be complete without the mention of Tunde Kelani, one of the most skilled veteran film producers Nigeria has ever produced.

A native of Abeokuta, in Ogun State, but born in Lagos, Tunde

View the Original article

Why I don�t do stunts in movies any more----Yemi Ayebo, aka Yemi My Lover

2011-01-25T13:26:00.000-08:00

Yemi Ayebo, aka Yemi My Lover, remember him? He is one of Nigeria's long-standing faces in the Yoruba-speaking genre of the Nigerian movie industry, Nollywood. He hit the limelight at the beginning of the movie industry in the early 90s with his daring stunts in movies.
Those who know the dark-skinned actor are aware that he was shot to limelight, following the agile, acrobatic and daring, even outright dangerous roles he constantly took up in films he was cast in.

Some of his popular works like Yemi in the Moon, Madanwo and a host of others, have remained evergreen in the memories of Yoruba movie watchers. Just as he started, he suddenly disappeared from the scenes with his stunts, leading to rumours over what may have been responsible for his exit.

But in this exclusive interview, the veteran actor, for the first time, revealed the real reasons why he threw in the towel and stopped taking up stunt-roles in his works.

The actor, who hails from Ondo State, revealed how he got hooked to the dangerous roles and his 26 years of experience as an actor. He also demystified the dark reports about actors plotting the deaths of fellow actors a few years ago when the Yoruba-speaking genre of Nollywood almost became synonymous with deaths.

How I became Yemi my Lover

Yemi my Lover was the title of a film that I produced in the early 90s. The film had parts one and two and shot me into limelight.
The birth and death of stunts

I just decided to veer a bit off the peculiar roles. Yemi my Lover is very unique. We can't all be doing the same thing. The industry is large and it leaves a whole lot of room for creativity. The late Hubert Ogunde had his own style. The same went for Baba Sala, Ade Love and the rest of the great ones. They all had their own uniqueness and that always stood them out from the crowd. They all had their own individual identities. They had their own styles so I believe the acrobatic roles and stunt-filled roles formed a platform for my identity. It was all aimed at creating an identity for myself and I thank God I was able to accomplish that. Today, Yemi my Lover has come of age and that maturity extends to my movies. I still act but I don't jump anymore. This is not to say that I derailed from my foundation but I am just more mature than what we used to have when I started.

How I started acting

I started acting as far back as 1983 when I was in secondary school. I have always had the passion in me and that is my driving factor. I believe God gave me the talent for acting and it cannot be hidden. The truth of the matter is that when you have a talent and you are not given an opportunity or medium to express that talent, you will find yourself running helter-skelter. That almost happened to me when I was starting out but I thank God that as time went by, things picked up and today, the rest is history.
Reaction of parents

My dad is now late but when he was alive and I told him I had made up my mind to become an actor, he didn't like it at all. I made him realise he could not choose for me. He tried all he could to dissuade me but I remained adamant.

The Nigerian movie industry today

The industry is growing. There's no doubt about the fact that it should have been more rapid than what we have today. We are not growing rapidly and this is because of those who are now coming into the system. They want to make money and that is what they give priority to. What they fail to understand is that when you are coming into this industry, you don't have to concentrate so much on making money. What should take prominence is the impact you intend to have on the industry. However, 90 per cent of actors coming into the system today want to get rich as quickly as possible. For them, it's all about the money and that is wrong. They have to realise that it is not all about the money alone. There's much more to acting than just money. The industry would grow much faster than it is now if not for the attitude of today's actors. In 10 years from now, we should be closer to those in the Western world but today, with what I'm seeing, I'm afraid, we are not growing rapidly. Rather, the pace is very slow and it because of the love of money.
Problems

Finance and lack of knowledge are some of the biggest problems facing the movie industry, today. Some have the money and don't have the knowledge. Some have the knowledge but don't have the money. I want to appeal to the government, the public and the corporate bodies to come and invest because it is a very profitable industry.

Secret of looking healthy

It's God's grace and my wife. She takes very good care of me and vice-versa.

Deaths in the industry

Don't mind them. How can we be killing each other in the movie industry? If that is the case, then we should all be dead by now. That is the wrong impression a lot of people have. Have they forgotten that a mechanic, a vulcaniser and any other person out there could die, so it is not restricted to the movie industry alone? Any human being can die at anytime. It is not peculair to the acting world alone. Anybody can die at anytime.

View the Original article

Monalisa�s Ex Husband Dejo Remarries

2011-01-25T12:56:00.000-08:00

Dejo Richards,husband to top actress Monalisa Chinda has finally moved on.He got married yesterday to American based Omolade Yetunde Olayinka,who is a graduate of Salem State University,Massachusetts.The wedding took place at ikoyi registry and was attended by a few friends.

After the registry,the engagement and reception took place at Ladipo Kasunmu,off Allen in Ikeja.Dejo

View the Original article

Gambia among hosts of 2011 AMAA awards screening

2011-01-25T12:26:00.000-08:00

s Vanguard Entertainment.

According to the organizers, camps in Gambia and the Nigerian city of Lagos, which commenced screening since January 6, are already hosting pre-selection of entries. The third location, Ghana, the report added, will host the College of Screeners, described as the last leg of the screening process before the Academy

View the Original article