Nigerian extradited from Benin over 100 million-dollar fraud
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on La Nouvelle Tribune
Akinade Adedeji Raheem, a 43-year-old Nigerian, was extradited from Benin to the United States and appeared in Atlanta over an alleged tax fraud scheme worth more than 100 million dollars. Investigators accuse him of filing more than 300 false returns between 2018 and 2023, according to the US Department of Justice.
Nigerian national Akinade Adedeji Raheem, 43, was extradited from Benin to the United States in a tax fraud case involving more than 100 million dollars. He appeared before an Atlanta federal court on 26 October 2026 and remains in custody pending further proceedings, according to the US Department of Justice.
Investigators accuse him of filing more than 300 fraudulent tax returns between 2018 and 2023 to obtain refunds from the US tax authorities, allegedly with the help of Abayomi Quadri Eletu, a resident of the United Kingdom and Nigeria. The group allegedly used the personal details of accountants and taxpayers to open online accounts with the IRS, according to the indictment.
The refunds were allegedly paid onto prepaid cards sent to addresses controlled by the suspects. Some of the funds were then allegedly laundered through money orders split into amounts below reporting thresholds. Federal prosecutor Theodore S. Hertzberg described the alleged scale of the fraud as “staggering”, according to the US Department of Justice.
Raheem was arrested on 15 April on his arrival in Benin, on the basis of an Interpol red notice, after evading arrest in the United States. This extradition is Benin’s second to the United States, according to the US Department of Justice. He was indicted in February 2026 on charges of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, money laundering, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.
