A Nigerian socialite based in South Africa extradited to the U.S. for his involvement in multimillion-dollar romance scam, Samuel ‘Putsammy’ Ugberease, emerged on the social media space with glitz, glamour and celebrity lifestyle coveted by netizens oblivious of his source of wealth.
In 2018, Mr Ugberease, identified with the sobriquet ‘Putsammy’ though also known as ‘Putput,’ ‘Sammy,’ threw a one-in-town wedding party, advertising massive display of wealth – swanky cars, designer shoes, rolex wristwatch, jewellery- reported and trended by a celebrity lifestyle magazine.
Though his official Instagram page which he used to flaunt filthy lucre appeared deactivated, photos of his lavish wedding that got the attention of many, still trend on social media with #foreverputput18.
Three years after his wedding, he and another Nigerian scammer, Oluwadamilare Kolaogunbule, were fingered in a multimillion-dollar romance fraud in the U.S.
The U.S. Department of Justice on February 3, 2021, said investigations showed that “Samuel Ugberaese, aka “Putsammy,” a Nigerian national, and his co-conspirators used romance scam techniques, including false stories and promises, as a means to defraud victims into transferring money on their behalf.”
According to the DoJ, Mr Kolaogunbule conspired with Mr Ugberaese to conduct financial transactions through his bank accounts, including accounts registered to purported Georgia export companies, in order to conceal and disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, and control of the criminal proceeds.
It noted that the indictment seeks a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of at least $2,367,520 related to the schemes.
In U.S. legal parlance, “a romance scam refers to a type of scheme in which scammers create fake profiles on Internet dating sites for the purpose of identifying victims, forming fraudulent romantic relationships with them, and then exploiting them for profit.”
While Mr Kolaogunbule was sentenced to 71 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to the fraud charges and was ordered to pay criminal restitution totalling $2,307,020 in 2022, Putsammy fled to South Africa until he was nabbed by a joint team of the Nigerian police and INTERPOL while on a visit to Nigeria.
Based on INTERPOL Red Alert,
Putsammy was arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on December 14, 2025, upon his arrival from South Africa.
The Force spokesperson, Anthony Placid, announced in a statement last Thursday that Mr Ugberease’s extradition was coordinated in collaboration with the INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB) Abuja.
Mr Placid said that Mr Ugberease’s “extradition proceedings were instituted at the Federal High Court, Lagos Judicial Division, where the court granted the application for his extradition in accordance with the provisions of the Extradition Act, CAP E25, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”
Also, the Nigerian police new media officer, Aliyu Giwa, described Mr Ugberease as a scammer who “broke hearts and stole millions,” while his victims wailed and lost millions in foreign currencies.
“From 2014 to 2018, Samuel Ugberease, also known as “Putsammy,” “Putput,” and “Sammy,” ran a complex romance scam that targeted vulnerable women in the United States,” Mr Giwa said. He “fled to South Africa, but we found him in the end.”
Reminiscent of Ramon ‘Hushpuppi’ Abbas, a notorious internet fraudster currently serving a jail term in the U.S., Mr Ugberease’s arrest and extradition sparked reactions on the social media sphere.
An X user, @Anwaobi shared a motion graphic of Putsammy’s lavish wedding party, saying “Not everything that shines (like) PutSammy is gold.”
Another X user, @n6oflife6 said,
“The Feds got PutSammy extradited from SA to Abuja to the USA. Ladies and Gentlemen, the fraud game is officially cooked. Leave while you still have the chance.”
“For years, a merciless predator stalked the digital shadows, weaponising love to shatter hearts and plunder the life savings of vulnerable women across the United States. Operating under deceitful aliases like “Putsammy,” Samuel Ugberease orchestrated a cruel, romance scam,” @Tunji_kinsu posted.
For Putsammy, what began as a soft and enviable celebrity lifestyle of pomp and circumstances, characterised by display of wealth to impress crowd of unsuspecting social media followers is ending in handcuffs and potential jail term in America.
Upon sentencing, he will join compatriots such as Hushpuppi, Invictus Obi, Oba Joseph Oloyede, Professor Nkechy Ezeh and many others jailed for wire fraud in the U.S.
On Monday, the Peoples Gazette exclusively ran a story on Nigerians arrested, convicted and jailed abroad in Q1 2026. The report highlights scores of Nigerians in the diaspora who were arrested, tried and jailed for their involvement in a series of crimes, ranging from sexual assault, multimillion-dollar romance scams, internet/wire fraud to murder, among others.