A United States District Court has sentenced Newton Ofioritse Jemide, a France-based Nigerian, to 41 months in prison for his role in an $8 million disaster relief fraud scheme.
Jemide, 47, was extradited from France and sentenced on Tuesday by Judge Deborah K. Chasanow.
He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release, pay $520,431 in restitution, and forfeit $311,036 to the U.S. government.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Jemide and his co-conspirators fraudulently obtained federal emergency funds intended for victims of natural disasters, including wildfires between 2016 and 2017.
The group used stolen identities of American citizens to open Green Dot debit card accounts and apply for disaster relief benefits through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other agencies.
The Justice Department revealed that while co-conspirators in the United States purchased hundreds of prepaid Green Dot cards, Jemide and others in Nigeria registered the cards using the stolen personal information.
Once federal funds were loaded onto the cards, Jemide coordinated with U.S.-based collaborators to withdraw the money in exchange for a commission.
To hide their tracks, the group used multiple individuals and business names for withdrawals, made purchases through intermediaries, and spread transactions across different bank and retail locations.
“FEMA dispersed $500 per fraudulent claim via the Green Dot cards, resulting in at least $8 million in total losses,” the DOJ stated.
