Senior USCIS Official Arrested in Green Card Crackdown, Texas

Senior USCIS Official Arrested in Green Card Crackdown

GREEN CARD CRACKDOWN, Texas — A former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officer has been arrested and charged in an alleged scheme to sell immigration benefits, including green cards.

Arrest and charges

Prosecutors allege that between December 2019 and March 2026, Ganiyu used his position at USCIS to approve immigration applications in exchange for money.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas said he unlawfully approved and expedited applications for permanent residency and citizenship by bypassing required federal review procedures.

The applications allegedly included Form I-485, which is used by people seeking lawful permanent resident status, commonly known as a green card, as well as petitions involving family sponsorship, removal of conditions on residency, and naturalization.

Ganiyu and his alleged co-conspirator, Adeniyi Akeem Somoye, discussed the arrangements in "extensive WhatsApp communications" and collected hundreds of thousands of dollars from applicants, prosecutors said.

Somoye was also arrested on September 2.

“Selling immigration benefits for cash is a blatant abuse of public trust,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould said in a press release.

Charges and court proceedings

Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu was arrested on September 2 on charges stemming from what investigators describe as a years-long corruption scheme involving immigration applications, according to federal prosecutors.