US Deportation Hammer Falls Again: 10 Nigerians Named in Fresh Immigration Crackdown

The United States has widened its immigration enforcement drive, publishing the names of 10 Nigerians arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and placed on the Department of Homeland Security’s “Worst of the Worst” register.

The latest disclosure, made public on Friday, August 28, comes barely weeks after US authorities released the names and photographs of 124 Nigerians on a similar list.

According to the US Department of Homeland Security, the 10 Nigerians are being held at immigration detention facilities across Pennsylvania, Texas, Kentucky, Wisconsin and Louisiana. The offences listed against them range from alleged fraud and identity theft to drug-related offences, child-related crimes, weapons possession and conspiracy.

Those named are Temitope Bashua, Ojehoro Lewis, Osemudiamen Kingsley Oziegbe, Daniel Oworen, Raymond H. Ekevwo, Franklin Dikeocha, Johnson Ogunlana, Chukwuemeka Okorocha, Tunde Korede and Chukwuemeka Chinye.

Bashua, detained in Allenwood, Pennsylvania, is listed in connection with wire fraud, identity theft and fraud, while Okorocha faces allegations including wire fraud, dangerous drugs, weapon possession and aggravated assault involving a firearm.

In Texas, Lewis is listed over alleged cruelty toward a child, while Oworen faces a dangerous-drugs allegation. Dikeocha, detained in Dallas, is listed in connection with an alleged sexual offence involving a child.

Oziegbe and Ekevwo are both listed over wire-fraud allegations, while Ogunlana faces fraud and identity-theft allegations. Korede is listed over conspiracy, while Chinye faces multiple allegations including larceny from a banking institution, fraud, identity theft and conspiracy.

DHS said its register is intended to highlight foreign nationals it describes as serious criminal offenders arrested by ICE.

However, the latest publication does not mean the 10 Nigerians have already been deported. The US authorities have not announced specific deportation dates or timelines for them.

The 10 names were also not included in the 124 Nigerians published by DHS in July, signalling a continuing expansion of the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement campaign.

The development underscores the growing scrutiny facing Nigerian nationals in the United States as Washington intensifies efforts to remove immigrants it says have criminal records or are otherwise subject to removal proceedings.