Ogbuefi and Silvester jailed for directing international laundering network
The Dublin court sentenced Francis Ogbuefi to nine years and Steven Silvester to seven and a half. Their network handled over €6 million from scams including romance fraud and smishing.
The two men were sentenced on 20 March 2026 after a jury convicted them in February of directing a criminal organisation and money-laundering offences. Ogbuefi was 42 and Silvester 32. The Garda National Economic Crime Bureau examined bank accounts, transactions and online communications used to organise the money flows.
The evidence showed they supplied and monitored accounts receiving stolen funds. Requests came from abroad for accounts suited to different frauds. Phone data showed Ogbuefi giving instructions and supervising payments. Judge Martin Nolan found both men understood banking systems and their weaknesses. He assessed Silvester’s role as lower than Ogbuefi’s.









































