SEATTLE – A brazen scheme to pilfer over $350,000 in pandemic unemployment benefits has landed a Nigerian national in federal custody. Abidemi Rufai, 42, of Lekki, Nigeria, was indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, nine counts of wire fraud, and five counts of aggravated identity theft, stemming from a widespread fraud targeting the Washington State Employment Security Department (ESD).
Rufai, apprehended May 14, 2021, at JFK Airport in New York, allegedly used the stolen identities of over 100 Washington residents to file bogus claims for unemployment benefits. But Washington wasn’t his only target. The indictment reveals a multi-state operation, with fraudulent claims also submitted in Hawaii, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Montana, New York, and Pennsylvania. Prosecutors are pushing for Rufai to be transported from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, to the Western District of Washington to face the charges.
The feds say Rufai wasn’t just sloppy. He attempted to evade detection by ESD’s fraud systems by using variations of a single email address, creating the illusion of numerous distinct claimants. The stolen funds weren’t kept in Rufai’s name, either. Proceeds were funneled through online payment accounts like ‘Green Dot’ and wired to bank accounts controlled by “money mules,” with a significant portion ultimately landing at the Jamaica, New York, residence of Rufai’s brother, where he was reportedly staying.
Investigators traced over $288,000 deposited into an American bank account controlled by Rufai between March and August 2020, painting a clear picture of the scale of the operation. This wasn’t a victimless crime; it’s money that should have gone to Washingtonians struggling to stay afloat during the pandemic. The FBI led the investigation, with crucial support from the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), Social Security Office of Inspector General, U.S. Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations.
If convicted, Rufai faces serious time. Conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud carry a potential sentence of up to thirty years in prison, especially given the connection to benefits paid during a presidentially-declared disaster like the COVID-19 pandemic. On top of that, the aggravated identity theft charges mandate a minimum two-year sentence, to be served consecutively with any other sentence imposed. This means a lengthy stay behind bars is almost certain if the prosecution prevails.
Assistant United States Attorneys Seth Wilkinson, Cindy Chang, and Benjamin Diggs of the Western District of Washington, along with Trial Attorney Jane Lee of the DOJ’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), are prosecuting the case. It’s important to remember that these are allegations at this point, and Rufai is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. But the evidence presented thus far suggests a calculated and far-reaching scheme to defraud state unemployment systems across the nation.
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Key Facts
- Agency: U.S. Secret Service
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
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