The U.S. government in September arrested and arraigned 43-year-old Femi Quadri, a Nigerian socialite, for allegedly stealing the identities of about 91 American citizens to scam them of their COVID-19 and disability benefits.
He was arrested around 9:30 a.m. on September 20, just hours before he was scheduled to fly on a one-way ticket to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, where U.S. security agents believed he planned to hibernate, away from America’s crime radar.
A criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on September 19 detailed Mr Quadri’s alleged fraudulent scheme, particularly how he stole the Personal Identifying information (PII), including Social Security Numbers (SSNs) of about 91 Americans to collect their disability, unemployment and COVID-19 benefits between 2020 and 2024.
Given the California Employment Development Department (EDD) gave debit cards to eligible unemployed and disabled citizens, Mr Quadri applied for benefits using their names and falsified certifications from real doctors, whose information he also stole.
The EDD mailed loaded debit cards with unlimited withdrawals to claimants. The cards carried a sticker that contained the activation details. The recipient had to call a number to provide their SSN to activate it.
The card, valid for three years, was registered with the Bank of America, and the EDD funded it for beneficiaries. It had no limit on daily purchases and withdrawals.
An investigator with the EDD found that Mr Quadri defrauded 19 disabled Americans whose identities he stole to claim the funds of over $200,000.
“EDD Investigator Ivant Romo reviewed approximately 19 DI (Disability Insurance) claims filed online under approximately 19 different identities for an approximate actual loss of $210,156 and a potential loss of approximately $436,488,” the criminal complaint stated.
Mr Romo found it suspicious that the claimants’ occupation “was often the same, among other commonalities.”
Having reviewed 72 UI (Unemployment Insurance) claims, the investigator discovered that Mr Quadri had scammed the U.S. government of $881,192 using stolen identities of 72 unemployed Americans.
Some of the footage of the withdrawals were examined, and the videos confirmed that Mr Quadri, on several occasions, was the same individual who withdrew cash using debit cards of different EDD beneficiaries.
Bank of America —where the EDD benefits were domiciled— supplied surveillance footage that showed Mr Quadri used the EDD debit cards to withdraw “under different accounts for different persons.”
Investigators found that the pictures of the individuals who were issued the EDD debit cards did not match the image of the person who withdrew the money.
Mr Romo identified Mr Quadri as the person who withdrew EDD funds from at least 38 accounts, including Michelle Davey, Ronald Tung, and Douglas Cost.
Pictures from Mr Quadri’s social media pages showed him wearing some of the clothes that he wore to withdraw the cash.
Mr Romo further observed Mr Quadri on the streets and placed him to be the same guy “conducting many fraudulent withdrawals.
Doctor Lai, a medical practitioner who supposedly certified some of the documents Mr Quadri used to scam his victims, told investigators that he did not certify any of the claims that carried his signature.
Mr Romo approached Ms Davey, a victim of the scam, who said she had never applied for a disability insurance benefit even though Mr Quadri had received $7,366 in her name. She also disclosed that the Nigerian fraudster got her actual date of birth and SSN correctly.
Mr Quadri withdrew $19500 using Mr Cost’s name. The victim told authorities that he had never filed an unemployment insurance benefit and did not give anyone consent to do so on his behalf.
The U.S. government identified Roland Iwhiwhu Otega as Mr Quadri’s co-conspirator. But five days after investigators searched his apartment in August 2023, Mr Otega boarded a ticket to Lagos, Nigeria and fled the U.S.
Incriminating materials of identity theft were found in his apartment, and investigators established a connection between him and Mr Quadri, given they shared at least one victim, Rosaly Ferrer.
Mr Quadri’s bank records with JP Morgan revealed that he had wired over $500,000 to four Chinese companies: Prinx Chengshan Shandong Tire Co Ltd (Agricultural Bank of China), Eping City Hengxin Trading Co Ltd (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China), Prachi Exports (Yes Bank Ltd) and Shouguang Firemax Tyre Co Ltd (Jinan Rural Commercial Bank Co., Ltd).
Given that he is only a permanent alien resident and not a full-fledged U.S. citizen, Mr Quadri will be deported from the U.S. as soon as he is convicted.
Since he had no family in the United States and had purchased property in Nigeria, authorities worried that his chances of fleeing were extremely high, especially since his co-conspirator had already absconded.
That the scam exceeded $10,000 will cause his offence to be considered an aggravated felony, which attracts stiff penalties that include the loss of his immigration status.
He was currently being remanded by the U.S. Marshal Service and would remain there until October 29, when he was scheduled to be arraigned before Judge Jean P. Rosenbluth on October 29.
Mr Quadri’s charges bordered on aggravated identity theft and bank and wire fraud.
