A former U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) employee has admitted to colluding with other government officials in a scheme to defraud public agencies, benefiting a company he privately owned. Ifediora Oli of Silver Spring, Maryland, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money, property, and honest services wire fraud, along with one count of falsifying records. Scheduled for sentencing on October 16 by U.S. District Court Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, Oli faces consequences for actions that have fleeced over $1 million from local entities, according to an announcement by the Department of Justice.

During the time of the conspiracy between 2018 and 2023, Oli ran Highbury Global Group, Inc. while employed at the USDA. With aid from Obinna Ogbu, an IT manager at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), and Bridgette Crowell, a public employee who managed contracts for the District's Office of Contracting and Procurement and formerly WMATA, they channeled WMATA IT contract funds into Oli's company. Implicated in the fraudulent dealings, Crowell and Ogbu have both pleaded guilty, their partnership unraveling, revealing a strategy to use Ogbu’s station to launder taxpayer dollars directly into Oli’s coffers.

The conspiracy unfolded with the trio abusing their positions to manipulate the system. Oli and Ogbu arranged bribes that had Oli rewarding Ogbu for diverting funds his way. As detailed in the court documents obtained by the Justice Department's website, Highbury received nearly half a million dollars through this corrupt arrangement.

Pivotal in the scheme was Crowell's role in the procurement of a contract for COVID-19 testing supplies. Upon learning of the opportunity in January 2021, she fed Oli and Ogbu non-public information that enabled Highbury to secure the contract. Over $630,000 flowed from the District into Highbury's accounts, a return on the cash kickbacks that planted into Ogbu's hands, subsequently shared with her. The Department of Justice's report further details how Oli falsified financial disclosure forms to mask his association with Highbury and hide potential conflicts of interest from the USDA.

The FBI's Washington Field Office, alongside the Office of Inspector General for both WMATA and the District, spearheaded the investigation into the malfeasance. Prosecuting the case is Assistant U.S. Attorney Tim Visser of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.