SEATTLE – A 26-year-old fugitive from a credit union car scheme was extradited from Mexico where he was living the highlife after the FBI lured him out in the open using his Facebook page.
A federal agent, in fact, saw the suspect on Facebook and induced him to “friend” the agent, who then tracked him to Cancun.
The suspect, Maxi Sopo, was making posts about how wonderful life was on the beach and how he was "living in paradise." The fugitive had been living at a nice apartment complex, working at a hotel, and partying at Cancun's beaches, pools and nightclubs.
"LIFE IS VERY SIMPLE REALLY!!!!" he wrote on June 21. "BUT SOME OF US HUMANS MAKE A MESS OF IT...REMEMBER AM JUST HERE TO HAVE FUN PARTEEEEEEE," he wrote on his Facebook page.
Authorities said Sopo drove a rented car to Mexico in February 2009 after he learned he was about to be indicted.
Sopo was extradited to the U.S., where on Thursday he pleaded guilty to a car loan fraud that stole more than $200,000 from Seattle Metropolitan CU, Watermark CU, Washington State Employees CU and Alaska USA FCU.
Sopo is one of three people charged with using fake documents and nominees to obtain fraudulent car loans from the credit unions. The others have either been convicted or pled guilty.
Sopo is a native of Cameroon who previously was convicted of fraud in the United Kingdom. He is scheduled to be sentenced in August.
