Maryland State Wire

U.S. District Judge Deborah K. Chasanow has sentenced Newton Ofioritse Jemide, a 47-year-old Nigerian national, to 41 months in federal prison for his involvement in a scheme to fraudulently obtain federal benefits. Extradited from France, Jemide will also serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution amounting to $520,431.83. A forfeiture money judgment was entered against him for $311,036.64.

Kelly O. Hayes, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, announced the sentencing alongside Joseph V. Cuffari, Inspector General for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); Acting Special Agent in Charge Colleen Lawlor from the Social Security Administration (SSA) Office of Inspector General – Philadelphia Field Division; and Special Agent in Charge William McCool from the U.S. Secret Service – Washington Field Office.

The conspiracy involved fraudulent claims submitted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) following declared national emergency disasters like hurricanes and wildfires. Victims were eligible for Critical Needs Assistance (CNA), which provided immediate funds through various means including pre-paid debit cards.

According to Jemide's guilty plea, he and others orchestrated the purchase of Green Dot Debit Cards by co-conspirators in the United States during 2016 and 2017. These cards were registered using stolen personal information obtained from identity theft victims across the country by co-conspirators based in Nigeria.

In 2017, after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and California wildfires occurred, Jemide and his associates used stolen identities to apply online for FEMA and CNA benefits resulting in at least $8 million being disbursed onto these debit cards.

The fraudulent activities extended beyond disaster-assistance claims as false applications were also submitted for Social Security benefits, IRS tax refunds, among other government benefits using multiple stolen identities.

Jemide's network communicated via encrypted messaging applications to coordinate their efforts. The conspirators ensured anonymity by employing others to conduct transactions using diverse methods across different locations.

U.S. Attorney Hayes commended DHS OIG, SSA OIG, and USSS for their investigative work while acknowledging support from Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and U.S. Marshals Service in extraditing Jemide back to America. Assistant U.S Attorneys Elizabeth Wright and Darren Gardner are prosecuting this case.

For further details about fraud reporting resources available through Maryland U.S Attorney’s Office visit justice.gov/usao-md or justice.gov/usao-md/report-fraud.