Former USCIS Officer, Accomplice Arrested for Bribes

Federal prosecutors have arrested a former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officer and his accomplice on charges of accepting nearly $960,000 in bribes to manipulate and expedite immigration applications. Lukman Owolabi Ganiyu, a former senior immigration services officer, and Adeniyi Akeem Somoye were arrested on September 2, 2026, following a federal complaint filed on August 31. The alleged scheme spanned from December 2019 to March 2026. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas, Ganiyu allegedly exploited his official position to approve various immigration applications, including petitions for alien relatives, adjustment of status, removal of conditions on residence, and naturalization. Prosecutors claim Ganiyu bypassed mandatory procedures such as required interviews, supervisory reviews, jurisdictional restrictions, and background checks to unlawfully expedite these applications. The complaint further alleges that some beneficiaries of these expedited processes were not eligible for the immigration benefits they received under federal law.