A 56-year-old Nigerian woman, Gladys Adaeze Okafor, residing in Lynn, Massachusetts, has been arrested and charged in federal court for allegedly voting illegally in multiple United States federal elections.
Okafor faces federal charges of unlawfully voting as an alien. According to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, federal agents arrested Okafor on Wednesday morning, with her initial court appearance scheduled at the federal courthouse in Boston.
Details of the federal charges and allegations
Court filings reveal that Okafor was born in Aba, Nigeria, and obtained lawful permanent resident status (a green card) in the United States in December 2022.
However, federal authorities confirmed that she is not a U.S. citizen and has never filed an application for American citizenship, making her legally ineligible to register or cast ballots in U.S. elections.
The charging documents outline a timeline of alleged voter registration fraud spanning two separate election cycles:
July 2022: Okafor allegedly submitted a voter registration application to the City of Lynn, falsely certifying under penalty of perjury that she was a U.S. citizen. She was subsequently added to the voter rolls and cast a ballot in the November 2022 midterm elections.
October 2023: Okafor allegedly submitted a second voter registration form, again checking the box attesting to U.S. citizenship. She later cast a ballot in the 2024 presidential primary election.
If convicted on the federal charge of unlawful voting as an alien, Okafor faces a statutory maximum penalty of up to one year in federal prison, one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $100,000.
Additionally, federal prosecutors noted that a conviction could lead to mandatory deportation proceedings following the completion of any court-imposed sentence.
Broader enforcement context and legal safeguards
The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julissa Walsh of the Major Crimes Unit, following an investigation spearheaded by United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New England.
The case falls under the District of Massachusetts’ Benefit & Voter Fraud Team, a specialised task force established in March 2026 to target systemic fraud and election irregularities.
This initiative aligns with broader federal enforcement priorities, following the creation of the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Fraud Enforcement Division in April 2026.
Federal authorities emphasised that the criminal complaint contains preliminary allegations. Under the U.S. legal system, the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Read Also: Nigerian teenager charged for alleged murder of man in US
