$4m fraud: US-based Nigerian faces 25 years jail term

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A 40-year-old US-based Nigerian, Leslie Mba, faces up to 20 years in prison for a $4m wire fraud conspiracy and an additional five years for making false immigration statements.

According to a Thursday report by MyTexasDaily.com seen by PUNCH Metro on Sunday, Mba, who is allegedly residing illegally in Houston, had pleaded guilty to participating in a business email compromise scheme and orchestrating a romance scam targeting victims nationwide.

He was said to have confessed to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and making false statements on immigration documents.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office stated, “From April 2018 to December 2023, Mba and others conducted scams that compromised business emails and deceived victims into sending payments to fraudulent accounts, resulting in a $4m loss.”

The report added that Mba also attempted to secure U.S. permanent residency through fraudulent marriages after being ordered for removal from the country.

Four others, including Grace Morisho, Rodgers Kadikilo, Kristin Smith, and Alexandra Golovko, all from Houston, have reportedly pleaded guilty to similar charges.

The report added that U.S. District Judge David Hittner accepted Mba’s plea and scheduled sentencing for February 26, 2026.

Mba, according to the report, will remain in custody until sentencing.

This comes less than 24 hours after another Nigerian, Cashmir Chinedu Luke, CEO of a US-based home care company, was arrested at San Francisco International Airport for allegedly defrauding the Department of Veterans Affairs of over $7m.

According to the Department of Justice, Luke was apprehended while attempting to board a flight to Nigeria.

Uthman, a Mass Communication graduate from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, has over six years experience in journalism. He reports crime to community-related news for Metro, business with a focus on the capital market and the oil and gas.

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