Two more Kenyans were sentenced Friday for their involvement in an international, multi-million dollar fraud and money laundering scheme. The laundering scheme targeted vendors for state governments.

Michael M. Ochenge, 33, of Lakeville, Minn. and Albert E. Gunga, 30, of Chanhassen, Minn. were sentenced to prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Ochenge faces four years in prison and Gunga faces 10 months in prison. Ochenge also has to pay restitution totaling $772,016.05 while Gunga has to pay $42,500 in restitution.

Throughout the fraud scheme, $3.379 million was diverted from four states to bank accounts held by co-conspirators. The funds were originally meant to be paid to legit vendors for their goods and services to the states' governments. Over $770,000 of that money was wired to bank accounts in Kenya. While most of the money was recovered before it was transferred, prosecutors say nearly $250,000 of West Virginia’s money was lost in bank accounts located in Kenya.

Federal prosecutors scored a win against international scam artists Thursday. Working closely with a task force made up of state and federal law enforcement six Kenyan nationals have been charged with a laundry list of fraud related charges.

The charges range from mail and wire fraud to money laundering.

Three individuals were sentenced Thursday for their part in a multi-state fraud scheme; in which the defendants tried to defraud several states totaling millions of dollars.

Robert M. Otiso, 36, of Elk River, Minn., Paramena J. Shikanda, 35, of Minneapolis, and Collins K. Masese, 21, of St. Paul, Minn. were sentenced to prison for their roles in a money laundering scheme that targeted vendors of state governments from West Virginia, Kansas, and Ohio and Massachusetts.

Otiso was sentenced to 72 months in prison for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Shikanda was sentenced to 46 months in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering. Masese was sentenced to nine months in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering.

“Today represents a victory for taxpayers,” United States Attorney Booth Goodwin said. “When the state itself is defrauded, we all suffer. Money taken from the public treasury is money not available for schools, roads, and police and fire departments. That is why this case was such a priority for my office.”

“I am very proud of the swift response and thorough investigation conducted by the federal and state investigators, and the aggressive prosecution of Susan M. Robinson, Chief of the White Collar Crime Section in my office,” Goodwin continued. “Their work, no doubt, prevented additional significant losses to the victims.”

Essential to the prosecutor’s case was the fact that the scammers in this country played a key role. According to Goodwin, they physically had to go to numerous locations to file fraudulent documents. “Whether the ring leaders are in or out of this country the part that these defendants played was essential to the success of this scheme.”

Throughout the fraud scheme, $3.379 million was diverted from four states to bank accounts held by co-conspirators. The funds were originally meant to be paid to legit vendors for their goods and services to the states' governments. Over $770,000 of that money was wired to bank accounts in Kenya. While most of the money was recovered before it was transferred, prosecutors say nearly $250,000 of West Virginia’s money was lost in bank accounts located in Kenya.

According to a news release, the indictment returned on Nov. 10 alleges that Micheal M. Ochenge, 33, of Minneapolis; Robert M. Otiso, 36, of Elk River, Minn.; Paramena J. Shikanda, 35, of Minneapolis; and other known and unknown co-conspirators, located in Kenya and in the United States, devised a vendor payment diversion scheme by which they obtained and attempted to obtain millions of dollars from the state of West Virginia and other states and their legitimate vendors.

As further alleged in the indictment, known and unknown co-conspirators, believed to be primarily located in Kenya, targeted vendors of the state of West Virginia and other states who received significant revenues from the states on a routine basis.

According to the news release, in order to execute their scheme, co-conspirators located in the United States filed documents creating dummy entities with names similar to the legitimate vendors. Fraudulent bank accounts were then created in the names of the targeted vendors.

With information acquired by unknown co-conspirators through the Internet and otherwise, direct deposit authorization forms were completed for the targeted vendors, including: Deloitte Consulting LLP; Unisys Corp.; Accenture LLP; and Electronic Data Systems, Inc.

The authorization forms were then mailed to the states along with the voided starter checks on the fraudulent accounts. The direct deposit authorization forms purported to authorize the states to send electronic payments for goods and services to the targeted vendors.

The fraudulently submitted forms were intended to and did cause several states to route payments to the fraudulent bank accounts established by the defendants and their co-conspirators.

As a result, in excess of $3,379,000 was fraudulently diverted from the state of West Virginia and other states to accounts controlled by the defendants and their co-conspirators.

The Indictment further alleges that Ochenge, Otiso, and Shikanda, along with Collins A. Masese, 20, and Albert E. Gunga, 30, both of Minneapolis, conspired together and with other known and unknown co-conspirators to launder the proceeds of the fraud, including approximately $770,000 which was wired to accounts in Kenya.

Michael Ochenge, Otiso, and Shikanda, named in all eight counts of the indictment, are charged with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted of all charges, each faces a statutory maximum sentence of 160 years in prison, an order of restitution and forfeiture.

The indictment charges Masese and Gunga with conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted, they face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, an order of restitution and forfeiture.

Angella M. Chegge-Kraszeski, named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the indictment unsealed today, was previously charged for her role in the money laundering conspiracy on May 20, 2009. She has been ordered detained pending further proceedings.

The investigation and arrests of the defendants represent a collaborative effort of the following agencies: United States Secret Service; Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division; United States Postal Service; United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service; West Virginia Commission on Special Investigations; Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; Federal Bureau of Investigations, Minneapolis Field Office; Wright County Sheriff’s Office; Minneapolis Police Department; Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force; Edina Police Department; Elk River Police Department; and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota.