The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested a Nigerian national, Rotimi Oladimeji, during a sweeping operation targeting undocumented and criminal migrants across the country.
In a statement posted on its official X page on Monday, ICE disclosed that Oladimeji, who had earlier been convicted of fraud, was ordered to pay more than $1.1 million in restitution prior to his arrest.
“Nigerian criminal alien Rotimi Oladimeji’s criminal history includes mail and wire fraud.
He was ordered to pay $1M+ in restitution before ICE New Orleans arrested him,” the statement read.
Court records show that Oladimeji was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment in December 2023 by a U.S. District Court after pleading guilty to wire and mail fraud.
Investigators revealed he aided Nigerian scammers in defrauding an American woman who believed she was in an online relationship with a fictitious veterinarian.
The victim, persuaded through elaborate schemes between 2019 and 2020, lost nearly $1.17 million.
Oladimeji reportedly pocketed 20 percent of the fraudulent proceeds, while accomplices funneled the remaining funds to other scammers in Nigeria.
After completing his prison term, Oladimeji was placed on a deportation order but remained in the United States until his latest arrest.
His detention comes amid intensified enforcement actions by ICE under directives aimed at removing illegal and criminal migrants from the country.