A Nigerian national, accused of orchestrating a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme, has appeared in a Miami federal courtroom following an extradition from Nigeria. Okechukwu Josiah Odunna, 60, has been charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution, following his alleged involvement in fraudulent real estate transactions that netted approximately $8 million in losses to U.S. banks, as the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
Odunna, originally from Abuja, Nigeria, was arrested last year and agreed to be extradited to the United States, facing serious charges that could lead to 30 years of imprisonment if convicted. He is accused of being part of a complex fraud that involved submitting false loan applications to U.S. financial institutions for property purchases in Florida between December 2005 and May 2008. According to the Justice Department, he has been detained since his arrest and will have his pretrial detention and arraignment hearings on Tuesday.
The indictment details how Odunna and co-conspirators allegedly manipulated the lending process with fraudulent applications and documents, even providing false settlement statements to lenders and sellers. The trickery was such that loans were issued for amounts far in excess of the true property values. Odunna, a licensed attorney at the time of the alleged offenses, reportedly acted as the settlement agent in nearly 20 fraudulent property transactions.
Other individuals implicated in the case have already faced legal repercussions. Karl Oreste received a 100-month prison sentence post-plea deal, and Marie Lucie Tondreau, the former Mayor of North Miami, was convicted and sentenced to 65 months in prison. Another conspirator, Kelly Augustin, remains at large. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ana Maria Martinez and Daren Grove are heading the prosecution and asset forfeiture, respectively, while the FBI Miami Field Office and Florida Office of Financial Regulation conduct investigations into the matter, as the Justice Department reports.
While an indictment signifies mere allegations, Odunna will remain under the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. More details on the case can be located on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida or through the Public Access to Court Electronic Records system under case number 14-cr-20349.
