$4.9m fraud: US court jails Nigerian for 46 months

A United States court has sentenced a 47-year-old Nigerian, Imafedia Adevokhai, to 46 months in prison over his involvement in a multi-year stolen identity tax refund fraud amounting to $4,945,886.

This was disclosed in a statement by the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, Abe McGlothin Jr., obtained by PUNCH Metro on Sunday.

According to the statement, Adevokhai conspired with two other convicted U.S-based Nigerians, Michael Martin and Osazuwa Okunoghae, to steal the identities of American citizens and file fraudulent tax refund claims.

The statement identified Adevokhai as being primarily responsible for preparing and filing the fake tax returns, while Martin and Okunoghae were involved in laundering the proceeds of the fraud.

It read, “According to information presented in court, Adevokhai, Martin, Okunoghae, and others were involved in a multi-year stolen identity refund fraud conspiracy involving the theft of victims’ personal identifying information and the use of that information to file fraudulent tax returns.

“The total tax refunds claimed through the fraudulent returns amounted to $4,945,886, and the U.S. Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, suffered at least $390,220.40 in actual loss.

“Adevokhai was involved in the preparation and filing of many of the fraudulent returns. Okunoghae and Martin were responsible for laundering the stolen funds. They collaborated with others who transferred the fraud proceeds through U.S. financial institutions and ultimately to foreign accounts.”

Following the investigation and prosecution, Adevokhai, 47, a resident of Alpharetta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to money laundering on 15 February 2023 and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert W. Schroeder III on 2 April 2025.

Adevokhai was also ordered to pay $90,380.60 in restitution and $3,500 in forfeiture.

The statement added that Martin and Okunoghae were previously sentenced after pleading guilty to related offences.

“Michael Martin, 52, of Texarkana, Texas, pleaded guilty to conspiracy on 14 February 2023 and was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on 21 November 2023,” the statement further read.

He was ordered to pay $90,380.60 in restitution and forfeit $121,623.41.

“Osazuwa Peter Okunoghae, 46, of Houston, pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy on 12 November 2019. He was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison on 13 January 2022 and ordered to pay $451,117.63 in restitution and an equal amount in forfeiture,” it also read.

The statement quoted McGlothin as affirming the commitment of the U.S. government to prosecuting those involved in fraud.

“The Eastern District of Texas is committed to prosecuting individuals who participate in schemes to steal personal information, prepare and file fraudulent tax returns, and launder the proceeds.

“Crimes like these affect all of us—the individual victims whose identities are stolen and used to file fraudulent tax returns; the taxpayers, who are left with the bill; and our financial institutions, which are manipulated and misused to launder the proceeds,” the statement further held.