The United States Department of Justice has initiated legal proceedings to revoke the American citizenship of a Nigerian-born man, George Oyakhire, accused of obtaining naturalisation under a false identity.
Oyakhire was listed among 12 individuals targeted in fresh denaturalisation actions filed in various U.S. district courts over alleged serious offences ranging from immigration fraud to terrorism-related activities and sexual abuse crimes.
According to a statement released by the Justice Department on Friday, Oyakhire allegedly entered the United States on October 18, 1986, using his real name, George Ofuan Oyakhire.
However, authorities claimed that about two years later, he obtained temporary resident status using a different identity — “Oliver Bennett Oyakhire” — alongside a false date of birth.
The DOJ said he subsequently adjusted his immigration status to lawful permanent resident in 1990 using the same false identity before applying for U.S. citizenship in 1995.
His naturalisation application was reportedly approved in March 1996, and he officially became a U.S. citizen the following month under the name Oliver Bennett Oyakhire.
The department argued that under the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act, citizenship can be revoked if it was obtained through concealment of material facts or deliberate misrepresentation.
Commenting on the development, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said individuals who secured citizenship through fraud should not retain the privileges of American nationality.
“Individuals implicated in committing fraud, heinous crimes such as sexual abuse, or expressing support for terrorism should never have been naturalised as United States citizens,” Blanche stated.
He added that the administration was determined to “restore integrity” to the immigration and naturalisation process.
Also reacting, Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said the Justice Department was filing denaturalisation actions at “record speeds.”
“The disturbing criminal histories confirm these individuals should have never received the privilege of U.S. citizenship,” he said.
The DOJ said the cases are being handled by its Office of Immigration Litigation with support from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and multiple U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country.
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