A United States court has sentenced Abiola Femi Quadri, a 43-year-old Nigerian national, to 11 years and 3 months in federal prison for orchestrating a massive COVID-19 benefits fraud scheme. Quadri was found guilty of submitting over 100 fraudulent applications using stolen identities to defraud California and Nevada of more than $1.3 million in COVID-19 pandemic unemployment and disability insurance benefits.
Quadri used stolen identities to submit fraudulent applications and withdrew the benefits at ATMs from 2021 until his arrest in September 2024. He used the proceeds to fund the construction of a luxury resort hotel and a shopping mall in Nigeria, with at least $500,000 of the stolen funds wired abroad for this purpose.
Quadri was sentenced to 135 months in federal prison, ordered to pay $1,356,229 in restitution, and fined $35,000. The case highlights the importance of international cooperation in combating cyber and economic crimes.
The United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the California Employment Development Department’s Investigation Division led the probe. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Brown from the Major Frauds Section prosecuted the
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