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| Justice Department unveils fraud sentencing details today |
A U.S. court has sentenced Abiola Femi Quadri to 135 months in prison. He schemed to steal $1.3 million in COVID-19 benefits from California and Nevada. Quadri used more than 100 stolen identities to file false claims. The court also fined him $35,000 and ordered $1,356,229 in restitution. He built a nightclub and mall in Nigeria with fraud proceeds.
Criminals siphoned relief funds earmarked for downtrodden Americans. Federal state and local agencies doggedly countered pandemic swindles. Quadri pleaded guilty on January 2,2025 of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
Quadri is a 43-year-old Nigerian national living in Pasadena, California. He gained U.S. permanent residency through a “fake wedding,” the court found. From 2021 until his arrest in September 2024, Quadri withdrew illicit benefits at ATMs across Los Angeles.
He submitted over 100 fraudulent applications for unemployment and disability benefits. He used stolen names, Social Security numbers, and other personal data. The applications claimed he was eligible for pandemic relief funds. Nevada and California paid him the funds.
Investigators discovered 17 counterfeit checks on his phone. The checks totaled more than $3.3 million and bore shell-company names tied to his aliases . Quadri wired at least $500,000 of the stolen funds back to Nigeria. He then invested in a 120-room resort, Oyins International, that featured a nightclub and mall.
The fraud was exposed in September 2024 at Los Angeles International Airport. Quadri was scheduled to board a flight to Nigeria when agents detained him. Search warrants executed at his Pasadena home turned up misused food-aid debit cards meant for developmentally disabled children.
Several agencies spearheaded investigation including U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations alongside California EDD Investigation Division. They painstakingly unraveled years of deceitful claims and meticulously tracked fund flows back to Nigeria.
Quadri entered a guilty plea on January 2, 2025 before U.S. District Judge George H. Wu in Central District of California quite recently. The plea covered one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud rather extensively. Judge Wu presided over the case with utmost gravity.
At sentencing on July 10, 2025, Judge Wu imposed 135 months in prison. He also set a $35,000 fine and full restitution of $1,356,229. Judge Wu noted the scale and duration of Quadri’s scheme in his remarks.
Andrew Brown, Assistant U.S. Attorney, said the sentence sends a strong signal. It shows that relief-fund fraud will face severe penalties. He noted that such crimes harm both taxpayers and genuinely needy recipients.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office emphasized its commitment to protecting pandemic relief programs. They highlighted the collaborative work of federal and state investigators. This case ranks among the larger individual frauds against COVID-19 funds.
California’s EDD reported that pandemic relief efforts saw unprecedented strain. By October 2021, about $20 billion, or 11 percent of benefits, were likely fraudulent. Fraud cases jumped amid a 2,300 percent surge in jobless claims during early 2020.
The EDD has since revamped its systems. It implemented two-factor ID checks and fraud-detection algorithms. The department also bolstered staff to verify identities before payouts.
Yet critics say those measures came too late. In 2020, the California State Auditor called EDD a “high-risk” agency for mishandling payments. Many claimants still faced long delays or denials.
Across the U.S., the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General flagged up to $191 billion in likely improper pandemic payments. States had to keep improper-payment rates under 10 percent to maintain federal funding.
Many fraudsters exploited lax ID checks. Others used stolen personal data sold on the dark web. Law enforcement estimates show fraud made up a small share of overpayments. Most mistakes were administrative or claimant errors.
Legal experts say heavy sentences deter future schemes. Professor Jane Liu of UC Berkeley’s School of Law notes that long terms raise the cost of fraud. They also reassure taxpayers about program integrity.
CalMatters reported that state agencies struggled to upgrade tech for rapid relief. Former EDD deputy director Greg Williams likened the fight to “going to a gunfight with a squirt gun”.
The bipartisan Government Accountability Office urged consistent fraud-prevention rules across states. It recommended federal guidance on ID checks and cross-state data sharing.
Pandemic-era programs will end, but risk remains. Future relief efforts must balance speed with security. Agencies should hire more investigators. They should also invest in AI-driven fraud detection.
Policymakers face pressure to tighten rules. Yet they must avoid choking off help for genuine claimants. Balanced policy must protect both taxpayers and vulnerable workers.
Perspectives from Stakeholders
Honest Claimants: Many legitimate applicants feel harmed. They faced delays as EDD chased fraudulent claims.
Taxpayers: They fund relief programs. High-profile fraud cases erode trust.
State Officials: They stress ongoing reforms. They say new systems will catch more scams.
Abiola Quadri’s 11-year sentence closes one of the larger pandemic fraud cases. It underscores the need for strong oversight of relief funds. The case also spotlights gaps in state systems during crises.
As California and other states build safeguards, they must learn from past mistakes. Swift help should pair with smart fraud checks. This balance will keep aid flowing to people who truly need it.