Akinade Adedeji Raheem, a Nigerian citizen who allegedly conspired to file fraudulent tax returns seeking over $100 million in refunds using stolen identities, was arraigned on Monday, October 26, in a US court on federal fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft charges after his extradition from Benin Republic.
“Raheem and his co-conspirators allegedly obtained hundreds of stolen identities, filed fraudulent tax returns using that information and laundered the proceeds through prepaid debit cards and purchases of used cars that were shipped to Nigeria and other locations,” said US Attorney, Theodore Hertzberg.
“The scope of the alleged fraud is staggering. Thanks to the dedication of the prosecution team and our law enforcement partners around the world, Raheem has been extradited to the United States, and his arrest confirms again that no alleged criminal can escape the reach of American justice,” he added.
According to the US Department of Justice statement on its website on Tuesday, October 27, Raheem is an alleged co-conspirator in a nationwide identity theft scheme that victimised hundreds of taxpayers.
“These come with repercussions that are long lasting, which is why we place a global emphasis on arresting and extraditing these individuals,” said Special Agent in Charge, Christopher Altemus Jr., of IRS-CI’s Texas Field Office.
“Protect your tax returns with an identity protection pin at IRS.gov and know that we are pursuing financial criminals to take back the stolen money and their freedom,” he added.
According to Attorney Hertzberg, the charges and other information presented in court showed that between 2018 and 2023, Raheem, who resided in Atlanta, and Abayomi Quadri Eletu, a resident of the United Kingdom and Nigeria, conspired together and with others to claim fraudulent tax refunds using the stolen identities of accountants and American taxpayers.
Over the course of their scheme, they allegedly filed more than 300 false tax returns claiming over $100 million in refunds from the IRS.
Raheem, Eletu and others allegedly obtained sensitive identifying information for tax professionals and taxpayers, including names, addresses, and Social Security numbers, by creating online accounts with the IRS and requesting private taxpayer information.
Using the personal identifying information of others, Raheem, Eletu and their co-conspirators allegedly filed tax returns claiming fraudulent refunds and then directed the IRS to split the refunds among prepaid debit cards shipped to addresses controlled by the co-conspirators.
In April this year, federal law enforcement agents sought to arrest Raheem at his residence and spoke to a man who identified himself as Raheem through a video doorbell and stated he was not home.
Less than a week later, agents learned that Raheem booked a flight from Mexico City to Benin Republic. On April 15, 2026, Raheem flew into Benin and was arrested by local authorities pursuant to an INTERPOL Red Notice.
Last week, Benin Republic authorities extradited Raheem to the United States, which was the second extradition to the United States from Benin in history.
On Monday, Akinade Adedeji Raheem was arraigned on a federal indictment and detained in the custody of the US Marshals Service pending further proceedings.
On February 24, 2026, a federal grand jury in the Northern District of Georgia indicted Raheem on one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, 14 counts of access device fraud, and 14 counts of aggravated identity theft.
Raheem faces maximum penalties of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, 20 years for money laundering, and 10 years for access device fraud, as well as a mandatory sentence of two years for aggravated identity theft.
On February 17, 2026, Eletu was indicted in the Western District of Texas. He was later arrested in the United Kingdom, where extradition proceedings are pending.
