Former United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officer Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu has been arrested by authorities on charges of conspiracy to obtain illegal benefits for a government official. According to authorities, the former senior officer and an accomplice spent nearly seven years obtaining U.S. citizenship and green cards (residence permits) for foreigners in exchange for bribes totaling about $1 million.
As the New York Post (NYP) writes, citing federal prosecutors in Texas, the officer first helped urgently obtain citizenship for his friend Adeniyi Akim Somoye and a green card for his wife.
After this, Somoye became his accomplice – according to the investigation, the man helped the officer process transfers through the Zelle and Cash App payment systems from the applicants. He was arrested along with Ganiyu on similar charges.
According to the authorities, the officer, for money, made it possible to quickly obtain a green card, citizenship, or register a stay in the United States for relatives, avoiding a number of checks, in particular for criminal records.
While in Texas, he intercepted cases not only from USCIS employees in local Houston for profit, but also in the out-of-state cities of Minneapolis and Charlotte, prosecutors believe. WhatsApp correspondence and calls from accomplices were used as evidence in the investigation.
The recipients of documents issued under a fraudulent scheme were mainly citizens of African countries. Ganiyu worked for USCIS from 2019 to 2026 and left shortly before he was charged.
“If a government employee puts a price tag on legal immigration status, it will be stopped. The Northern District of Texas will never tolerate corruption in government,” said prosecutor Ryan Raybold, who brought the charges.
Both defendants face up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The Nigerian media Peoples Gazette identifies them as natives of Nigeria.
