Two Nigerian men have been charged in the United States with orchestrating a multi-year scheme that used stolen identities to file hundreds of false tax returns and attempt to swindle more than $100 million from the country’s Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Indictments unsealed Wednesday in the Northern District of Georgia and the Western District of Texas charged Akinade Adedeji Raheem, 43, of Atlanta, Georgia, and Abayomi Quadri Eletu, 42, of the United Kingdom and Nigeria, with conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, money laundering, and aggravated identity theft.
Between 2018 and 2023, the pair and their associates allegedly created fraudulent online accounts with the IRS to extract the names, addresses, and Social Security numbers of tax professionals and taxpayers. They then filed over 300 false returns directing the IRS to send refunds to prepaid debit cards they controlled.
To intercept IRS correspondence before it reached real taxpayers, the defendants allegedly filed change-of-address requests with the U.S. Postal Service, rerouting official mail to addresses under their control. When the IRS sent identity verification letters before releasing certain refunds, the defendants posed as the real taxpayers and approved the payments.
Once refunds landed on the prepaid cards, the funds were laundered through money orders purchased in amounts calibrated to avoid financial reporting thresholds. Proceeds were used to buy used vehicles from online auction sites, some of which were shipped to Nigeria, along with designer clothing and other goods.
Eletu was arrested in the United Kingdom at the request of the United States. His charges include five counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, seven counts of access device fraud, and 21 counts of aggravated identity theft, in addition to the conspiracy counts he shares with Raheem. Raheem faces 14 counts each of access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Each conspiracy charge carries a maximum of 20 years in prison, access device fraud carries up to 10 years, and a conviction on aggravated identity theft adds a mandatory two-year sentence on top of any other prison term. Both men are presumed innocent. An indictment is a formal accusation, not a finding of guilt.
The case is being investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, with significant assistance from the United Kingdom and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
