The United States Department of Justice has filed a civil complaint seeking to revoke the citizenship of Nigerian-born Emmanuel Oluwatosin Kazeem over allegations that he fraudulently obtained his American naturalisation.
The complaint was filed before the US District Court in Baltimore, Maryland, according to a statement released by the Justice Department on Monday.
US authorities accused Kazeem of concealing criminal activities and providing false information during his citizenship process.
Kazeem was convicted in 2017 on 19 counts, including mail fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit fraud. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
However, his sentence was commuted in 2024 by former US President Joe Biden after serving about six years behind bars.
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said the US government would continue pursuing individuals who unlawfully secured citizenship.
“The Trump Administration will not permit wrongdoers to retain the US citizenship that they were never entitled to in the first place,” Shumate stated.
He added that American citizenship remains a privilege and can be revoked if obtained through fraud or deceit.
According to court filings, investigators alleged that Kazeem’s fraudulent activities started before his naturalisation and continued afterward, making him legally ineligible for citizenship.
Authorities also claimed that Kazeem entered into a sham marriage to obtain permanent residency before later marrying another woman, further violating immigration rules.
The investigation reportedly began in 2013 after a resident of Medford, Oregon, informed the Internal Revenue Service that fake tax returns had been filed using her family’s personal information.
Search warrants carried out in Illinois, Maryland and Georgia uncovered prepaid debit cards, electronic devices, money orders and cash linked to fraudulent tax refunds.
The Justice Department described Kazeem as “the leader and mastermind” of the scheme.
Investigators alleged that the syndicate possessed stolen personal data belonging to more than 259,000 victims. Authorities also claimed Kazeem purchased over 91,000 stolen identities from a Vietnamese hacker who breached a private company database in Oregon.
Between 2012 and 2015, prosecutors said Kazeem and his associates used the stolen identities to file thousands of fake tax returns and bypass IRS security systems using electronic filing PINs.
The Justice Department linked Kazeem to 10,139 fraudulent federal tax returns that attempted to claim more than $91m in refunds. Authorities said the scheme successfully obtained over $11.6m.
Investigators further alleged that more than 2,000 wire transfers worth over $2.1m were sent to Nigeria, with more than 700 directly connected to Kazeem.
Authorities also claimed that proceeds from the fraud were used to make a nearly $200,000 down payment on a house in the United States and to support plans for a proposed $6m four-star hotel project in Lagos.
Shortly before his arrest in 2015, Kazeem allegedly transferred ownership interests in some US properties to his sister in Nigeria for just $10.
The case was jointly investigated by the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security. The denaturalisation proceedings are now being handled by the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation.
