‘Ghanaian Passport Scam Queen’ Charmaine Brown Guilty of Passport, Wire, Bankruptcy Fraud

Greenbelt, MD – In a shocking verdict, Charmaine Miesha Brown, 45, of Lusby, Maryland, was found guilty of conspiring to commit passport fraud and wire fraud, as well as bankruptcy fraud, and making a false statement in bankruptcy proceeding.

The guilty verdict was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Karen L. Brown Cleveland of the U.S. Department of the State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Washington Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Colleen Lawlor of the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, Philadelphia Field Division; and Inspector General Joseph V. Cuffari of the Department of Homeland Security.

According to trial testimony, Brown, a United States citizen, married Andrews Oduro Brown, 45, a Ghanaian national who entered the United States in May 2013. In 2021, Oduro obtained legal permanent resident status in the United States through his marriage to Brown.

The evidence established that from December 2014 through April 2021, Brown and Oduro conspired to obtain United States passports for Oduro’s children, who were non-United States citizens, through false statements and fraudulent identity documents. The duo submitted applications for passports in the names of Brown’s children, but bearing the photographs of Oduro’s children.

Further, the evidence proved that from August 2016 through April 2021, Brown and Oduro conspired to receive payments from the state of Maryland’s Child Care Scholarship Program to which they were not entitled. The Child Care Scholarship Program provides reimbursement for childcare and direct payments to providers of childcare to low-income families. Brown falsely reported to the state of Maryland that a friend, Individual 1, was watching her children.

Finally, according to trial testimony and court documents, on March 5, 2018, Brown and Oduro defrauded creditors and the bankruptcy trustee, by filing a fraudulent Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland, using the name and partial social security number of Individual 1, seeking the discharge of thousands of dollars in debts and tax obligations to the state of Maryland that Oduro incurred using the name and PII of Individual 1.

Brown faces up to 20 years in federal prison for her role in the passport and wire fraud schemes, and up to 5 years for bankruptcy fraud. A sentencing date has been set for April 15, 2024. Oduro, 45, is currently a fugitive and faces similar charges.