Former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officer was arrested and charged in what federal prosecutors call a corruption scheme to sell immigration benefits, including green cards.
Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu, a former Senior Immigration Services Officer in Dallas, and associate Adeniyi Akeem Somoye were arrested Sept. 2 and charged with conspiracy to receive illegal gratuities by a public official, the Justice Department announced.
Prosecutors say from December 2019 through March 2026, the two took hundreds of thousands of dollars to unlawfully approve immigration applications, including green card, family sponsorship and naturalization forms.
Ganiyu allegedly did not complete required interviews and background checks to fast-track approvals for applicants prosecutors say were ineligible under U.S. federal law.
Investigators found $287,830 of cash deposits in Ganiyu's accounts and about $671,438 in payments through Zelle, Cash App and other platforms.
Investigators say Ganiyu assigned himself Somoye's naturalization application and approved it the same day in December 2022, before receiving $138,392 from Somoye between May 2023 and January 2026.
"Selling immigration benefits for cash is a blatant abuse of public trust," U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould said.
Ganiyu's attorney says his client "denies any criminal conduct" and will fight the allegations in court. A judge ordered Ganiyu to be released with GPS monitoring. Each man faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
