GUILTY!
‘Federal Grand Jury indicts NIGERIAN Man, MONSURU OGUNBIYI for engaging in Sham Marriage, Falsification of documents to obtain Green Card’-U.S Attorney’s Office, Western District of Pennsylvania
…Couple Charged in Conspiracy to defraud United States Government
* ‘Monsuru Ogunbiyi and Ajia Strauss conspired with one another to defraud the United States. Ogunbiyi, a native and citizen of Nigeria, and Strauss, a native and citizen of the United States, agreed to enter into a sham marriage so that Ogunbiyi could obtain lawful permanent residency in the United States’
* ‘As part of the conspiracy, Ogunbiyi agreed to pay money to Strauss, including $1,500 on the day of their June 3, 2016, marriage in New Jersey. Ogunbiyi and Strauss submitted false and fraudulent statements and documents to the United States’
* The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than five years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000, or both, for the charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States
BY GEORGE ELIJAH OTUMU/AMERICAN FOREIGN BUREAU CHIEF
CRIME DOES NOT PAY. A NIGERIAN MAN, MONSURU OGUNBIYI, residing in the Pittsburgh area and a lady resident of Newark, Ajia Strauss, an American from New Jersey have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The one-count indictment, returned on July 11 and unsealed recently showed Monsuru had perfected his scheme to defraud American government so as to fraudulently obtain lawful permanent resident status (Green Card).
Going by United States Attorney Scott W. Brady at the Western District of Pennsylvania, the indictment presented to the court, from June 2016, to March 2019, reads that Monsuru Ogunbiyi and Ajia Strauss conspired with one another to defraud the United States. Ogunbiyi, a native and citizen of Nigeria, and Strauss, a native and citizen of the United States, agreed to enter into a sham marriage so that Ogunbiyi could obtain lawful permanent residency in the United States. As part of the conspiracy, Ogunbiyi agreed to pay money to Strauss, including $1,500 on the day of their June 3, 2016, marriage in New Jersey. Also as a part of the conspiracy, Ogunbiyi and Strauss submitted false and fraudulent statements and documents to the United States.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than five years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000, or both, for the charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.
Assistant United States Attorney Mary McKeen Houghton is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Department of Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
