A New Jersey man allegedly posed as U.S. military personnel to scam women through dating sites.

According to court documents, Rubbin Sarpong and other co-conspirators are accused of stealing $2.1 million from more than 30 people.

The criminal complaint states that Sarpong and several conspirators living in Ghana set up profiles on various dating websites between 2016 and 2019, using fake or stolen identities to pose as U.S. military personnel stationed overseas.

"They contacted victims through the dating websites and then pretended to strike up a romantic relationship with them, wooing them with words of love," the complaint states.

Sarpong and the conspirators allegedly asked the victims for money, saying they needed to ship gold bars to the U.S. and the money would be reimbursed.

Although the stories varied, the court documents state that most of the co-conspirators claimed to be military members stationed in Syria who received, recovered, or were awarded gold bars.


"The co-conspirators told many victims that their money would be returned once the gold bars were received in the United States," the complaint stated. 

The co-conspirators allegedly used various email accounts to provide victims with instructions on where to wire money, including recipient names, addresses, financial institutions and account numbers.

"The co-conspirators also provided various email accounts to financial institutions in conjunction with opening bank accounts used in the fraud, and in communicating with such banks," the court documents add. 

The victims reportedly wired money to bank accounts held by Sarpong and others at financial institutions in the United States, in addition to mailing personal checks and cashier's checks to the co-conspirators. 

Sarpong, 35, was scheduled to appear at a Camden federal court Wednesday on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, according to USA TODAY. 

"Based upon the investigation to date, the conduct of the co-conspirators and the nature of the conspiracy, I have probable cause to believe that the conspiracy is ongoing," a federal agent wrote in the complaint.