By: Richard L. Smith
A Texas man and his romantic partner have admitted to their roles in a cross-border romance fraud scheme that deceived elderly victims—one of whom lived in New Jersey—into sending hundreds of thousands of dollars overseas, federal authorities announced.
According to a statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice, Felix Clark, 36, of Keller, Texas, pleaded guilty on May 6, 2025, to charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud before Chief U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb in Camden federal court.
His sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2025.
Authorities say Clark used aliases such as “Joseph Moore” and “Stanley Smith” to help carry out the scam, which operated between June and September 2022.
While living in Florida at the time, Clark conspired with individuals based in Ghana to collect and transfer funds fraudulently obtained through fake online romantic relationships.
His co-conspirators reportedly targeted emotionally vulnerable individuals, particularly elderly people who had recently lost spouses, by falsely claiming they wanted to marry them or needed financial help to access gold reserves in Ghana.
One of the victims, referred to in court as “Victim-1,” was a senior citizen living in New Jersey.
During his plea hearing, Clark admitted to personally handling over $500,000 in victim losses.
He also confessed to attempting to obstruct justice by submitting a falsified death certificate in an effort to retrieve his seized passport.
Clark’s partner, Esther Amppiaw, 33, also of Keller, Texas, pleaded guilty on May 23, 2025, to operating an unlicensed money transmission business.
Prosecutors said Amppiaw knowingly accepted and moved more than $317,000 in checks, money orders, and electronic transfers—funds she now admits were tied to fraudulent activity.
She reportedly operated the scheme between January 2022 and June 2023, also while residing in Delray Beach, Florida.
Both Clark and Amppiaw face sentencing in the fall.
The wire fraud charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.