Advertisement
Fast
Law
PLC,
the
legal
representative
for
Hajia4Reall
has
clarified
that
she
did
not
cooperate
with
US
Attorney
as
part
of
her
efforts
to
seek
a
reduced
sentence.
In
a
video
posted
on
the
firm’s
official
Instagram
page
on
July
4,
a
spokesperson
categorically
said
Hajia4Reall
did
not
set
up
a
fake
identity
to
scam
anyone
and
di
not
meet
with
the
US
Attorney
for
a
lenient
sentencing.
Read
more:
Hajia4Reall
sentenced
to
1
year
and
a
day
for
romance
scam
with
no
ICE
detention
According
to
her
lawyers,
they
have
gathered
evidence
which
showed
that
Hajia4Reall’s
images
and
videos
were
used
by
some
people
to
catfish.
“We’ve
been
getting
a
lot
of
inquiries
whether
or
not
our
client,
Mona
Montrage
cooperated.
She
never
met
with
the
US
Attorney
and
the
only
information
that
was
provided
in
our
sentencing
submission
was
to
explain
how
she
became
involved
in
the
case.
“We
have
also
uncovered
evidence
to
show
that
her
images
and
her
video
were
used
to
catfish,”
the
law
firm
explained.
‘We
are
incredibly
proud’
–
Hajia4Reall’s
lawyers
express
satisfaction
over
sentencing
outcome
The
statement
from
Mona’s
legal
team
addresses
recent
allegations
suggesting
she
provided
information
about
others
in
exchange
for
a
more
lenient
sentencing.
“Ask
yourself
if
our
client
did
come
in
and
did
meet
with
the
US
Attorney’s
Office,
do
you
really
think
they
would
be
asking
for
a
guideline
sentence
of
37
to
46
months?
They
wouldn’t,”
she
added.
Mona
Montrage
was
sentenced
on
June
28,
2024
to
one
year
and
a
day
for
her
involvement
in
the
fraud
case.
Prior
to
that,
she
had
appealed
for
a
reduced
sentence
citing
her
role
as
a
single
parent.
Background
In
May
2023,
it
was
reported
that
Hajia4Reall
has
been
extradited
from
the
UK
to
the
United
States
to
face
criminal
charges
against
her
which
included
conspiracy
to
fraud
and
receive
proceeds
of
over
$2
million
from
romance
scams.
According
to
the
US
Attorney,
from
at
least
in
or
about
2013
through
in
or
about
2019,
Montrage
was
a
member
of
a
criminal
enterprise
(the
“Enterprise”)
based
in
West
Africa
that
committed
a
series
of
frauds
against
individuals
and
businesses
in
the
U.S.
including
romance
scams.
Many
of
the
Enterprise’s
romance
scam
victims
were
vulnerable,
older
men
and
women
who
lived
alone.
Damian
Williams,
the
United
States
Attorney
for
the
Southern
District
of
New
York
said
the
Enterprise
frequently
conducted
the
romance
scams
by
sending
the
victims
emails,
text
messages,
and
social
media
messages.
According
to
court
documents,
Hajia4Reall
received
money
from
several
victims
of
romance
frauds
who
members
of
the
Enterprise
tricked
into
sending
money.
Among
the
false
pretenses
used
to
induce
victims
to
send
money
to
Montrage
were
payments
to
transport
gold
to
the
U.S.
from
overseas
payments
to
resolve
a
fake
FBI
investigation,
and
payments
to
assist
a
fake
U.S.
Army
officer
in
receiving
funds
from
Afghanistan.
In
total,
Montrage
controlled
bank
accounts
that
received
over
$2
million
in
fraudulent
funds
from
the
Enterprise.