The United States Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit seeking to revoke the citizenship of a Nigerian national, Emmanuel Oluwatosin Kazeem, over his involvement in a multi-million-dollar fraud scheme.
According to a statement released by the department, Kazeem was convicted in 2018 on 19 counts, including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. Authorities said the case stemmed from a 2013 complaint by a victim in Medford, Oregon, who reported that fraudulent federal and state tax returns had been filed using her family’s personal information.
Investigations led by the Internal Revenue Service uncovered a widespread scheme involving stolen identities and fraudulent tax filings. Search warrants executed across Illinois, Maryland, and Georgia resulted in the seizure of prepaid debit cards, cash, money orders, and electronic devices tied to the operation.
Officials identified Kazeem as the leader of the scheme, which involved the theft of personal identifying information from over 259,000 victims. Prosecutors said he acquired more than 91,000 identities from a Vietnamese hacker who accessed a private database belonging to a background-check company.
Authorities revealed that between 2012 and 2015, Kazeem and his co-conspirators used the stolen data to file thousands of fraudulent tax returns. The group reportedly obtained over 19,500 electronic filing PINs, enabling them to bypass IRS security systems and access taxpayer records.
In total, Kazeem was linked to more than 10,000 fraudulent tax filings, attempting to claim over $91 million in refunds and successfully obtaining approximately $11.6 million. Investigators also traced at least 2,000 wire transfers worth over $2.1 million sent to Nigeria, with more than $690,000 directly linked to him.
Proceeds from the fraud were allegedly used to fund luxury purchases, including real estate in Maryland and an attempted $6 million hotel development project in Lagos. Authorities also stated that Kazeem transferred property assets to relatives shortly before his arrest in 2015.
Kazeem was sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay more than $12 million in restitution. However, his sentence was later commuted by former US President Joe Biden, leading to his release.
In its latest filing, the Justice Department argues that Kazeem’s criminal activities—both before and after his naturalisation—rendered his citizenship invalid. The complaint further alleges that he engaged in a sham marriage to obtain permanent residency and later entered into a second marriage, violations that could disqualify him from US citizenship.
The case comes amid intensified immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump, whose administration has reiterated a tough stance on criminal migrants, including increased deportation efforts.
