A 60-year-old Nigerian man, Okechukwu Josiah Odunna, has been extradited to the United States to face charges related to a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme that defrauded U.S. financial institutions of approximately $8 million.
Odunna, who was arrested by Nigerian authorities on September 24, 2024, following a U.S. extradition request, is accused of being a key player in a fraudulent loan scheme used to purchase about 20 residential properties in Florida.
According to the U.S. indictment, between December 2005 and May 2008, Odunna and his co-conspirators allegedly manipulated financial records, submitted false information, and omitted key details to deceive U.S. banking institutions.
His extradition marks a major step in international cooperation against financial crimes, as authorities in both Nigeria and the U.S. continue efforts to clamp down on cross-border fraud schemes.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also claimed that, as part of the scheme, Odunna and his co-conspirators submitted false and fraudulent loan applications and documents to financial institutions regarding residential property purchases, resulting in lenders lending out more money than they otherwise would.
These false statements to the lenders included false names of the persons who would be borrowing the money to purchase the properties, falsely inflated sale prices that were much higher than the true prices, and false details regarding the receipt and disbursement of funds in connection with the purchases of the properties.