FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
AUSA VICKIE E. LEDUC or
MARCIA MURPHY at 410-209-4885
OCTOBER 16, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MOUNT RAINIER MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO
ASSUMING THE IDENTITY OF U.S. MILITARY MAN
Victim Was Forced to Resign from the Military; Imposter Received Over $41,800 from Lenders
Baltimore, Maryland - Tosin Okunbanjo, age 33, of Mt. Rainier, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to aggravated identity theft arising from a scheme to assume the identity of a U.S. military serviceman in order to unlawfully obtain loans and credit cards, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein.
U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said, “Tosin Okunbanjo used the identity of a U.S. military man for six years. As a result, the victim was denied citizenship and forced to resign from service to our country before the scheme could be unraveled. Identity fraud cases are a top priority for federal law enforcement.”
According to his plea agreement, Okunbanjo lived in the United States from 2001 through July 2007 under a false identity of another person. Okunbanjo had entered the United States using a false passport bearing the victim’s name and date of birth. Okunbanjo married a U.S. citizen, obtained a Maryland driver’s license, obtained employment, enrolled in college, received over $41,800 from lenders under four student loans, three credit cards and a car loan, and ultimately became a lawful permanent resident, all under the false name and identifying information of the victim.
The victim, a lawful permanent resident, served four years in the U.S. military. While still in the military, the victim filed for U.S. citizenship in 2005. It was discovered that someone else, now known to be Okunbanjo, was living in the country under the victim’s identity and that immigration officers had recorded all of Okunbanjo’s contacts in the victim’s alien file. As a result, the victim was initially denied citizenship, and was forced to resign from the military. Following the investigation leading to the prosecution of this case, the victim has since become a U.S. citizen.
Okunbanjo faces a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison, followed by one year of supervised release. U.S. District Judge Richard D. Bennett has scheduled sentencing for January 4, 2008 at 2:00 p.m.
United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for their investigative work. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Budlow, who is prosecuting the case.