Individuals involved in Diversity Visa Lottery Corruption Plead Guilty to Conspiracy and Visa Fraud Charges

Joseph Longanga Okoko, Medard Lotahe Elonge, Joseph Onolenga Okamba pled guilty on August 7, 2025, September 8, 2025, and November 13, 2025, respectively, to conspiracy to defraud the United States in federal court in Cedar Rapids.  Bienvenu Saido Binyangi pled guilty on December 11, 2025, to visa fraud.

All four men were charged in a ten-count indictment in the Northern District of Iowa.  The indictment alleged a fraudulent conspiracy related to the diversity visa lottery system in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as aiding and abetting marriage fraud, other types of visa fraud, and obstructive conduct.  There are various types of fraud that may occur in the diversity visa lottery process, specifically related to marriage. If a diversity visa lottery winner was not married at the time they won the lottery, they may engage in “coupling.”  “Coupling” is where an individual falsely claims that they have a “spouse,” so that they can later petition to bring their “spouse” to the United States.

In plea agreements, Okoko, Elonge, and Okamba admitted to assisting individuals in the Congo who won the diversity visa lottery to enter contracts of fake marriages to help additional individuals who would not be eligible for entry come to the United States.  Binyangi also admitted to obtaining a non-immigrant visa by fraud so that he could come to the United States.  Binyangi admitted in his plea that when in Congo, he was in a relationship with Okoko’s daughter.  Okoko’s daughter, who also came to the United States, gave birth to Binyangi’s child in the United States.  After Binyangi entered the United States, he reunited with Okoko’s daughter and their shared child.  Okoko’s daughter and Binyangi are married. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams has been set for January 30, 2026, at 1:30 P.M., for Okoko. Sentencing for Elonge, Okamba, and Binyangi will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  All men remain free on bond.  Okoko, Elonge, and Okamba face a possible maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and a term of up to three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.  Binyangi faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and a term of up to three years of supervised release following any imprisonment. 

The case is being prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Matt L. Cole and Assistant United States Attorney Nicole L. Nagin and was investigated by the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the United States Postal Inspection, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Waterloo Police Department, the Sioux City Police Department, and the Iowa Department of Transportation. 

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.

The case file number is 24-CR-2052.

Follow us on X @USAO_NDIA.