Former USCIS officer and associate indicted for nearly $960,000 bribery scheme
Former senior USCIS official Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu and his partner Adeniyi Akeem Somoye were charged with taking almost $960,000 in bribes to expedite citizenship applications.
Federal investigators uncovered a scheme in which former senior United States Citizenship and Immigration Services officer Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu colluded with Adeniyi Akeem Somoye to sell immigration benefits for cash. Between December 2019 and March 2026 the pair accepted roughly $960,000 in bribes, with Ganiyu receiving $671,438 through digital payment apps and $287,830 in cash deposits, while Somoye processed about $1.7 million in transfers and kept a share as his cut.
They circumvented standard procedures by routing applicants directly to Ganiyu, skipping criminal background checks and bypassing field office supervisors in Minneapolis, Charlotte and Houston. Most applicants were from African countries. Ganiyu resigned from USCIS in March 2026, and both men appeared in court on Sept. 2, facing up to five years imprisonment and fines of up to $250,000. The case was pursued by the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, USCIS Office of Investigations, DHS Office of Inspector General and the FBI Dallas Field Office.
Why it matters
The case reveals how public officials can exploit immigration processes, undermining trust in the system.
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