Convicted Nigerian Fugitive Extradited To U.S. Over Offer, Payment of Illegal Remuneration

A convicted Nigerian fugitive, Florence Enwerim Onyegbu, was on Thursday, March 23, 2023, extradited to the United States of America, USA, where she is wanted to answer to criminal charges bordering on violation of the U.S. Law involving the offer and payment of illegal remuneration in a health care matter.

Her extradition was coordinated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, following a request by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, seeking assistance for her apprehension.

Investigations by the EFCC revealed that she had changed her name from Florence E. Onyegbu to Janet Boi in an attempt to remain hidden.She, however, ran out of luck when operatives of the EFCC swooped on her at her residence in the Ojodu area of Lagos on February 21, 2022.

Upon her arrest, a national identity card with the name Janet Boi, as well as a Texas driver’s license with the name Florence Enwerim Onyegbu, were found on her.

The Commission, on March 22, 2023, handed over Onyegbu to the FBI, following an extradition order granted by Justice Z.B. Abubakar of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on December 2, 2022.

Onyegbu’s travails began after she was arrested on February 12, 2011, in the U.S. and subsequently sentenced to 46 months imprisonment, following a guilty plea, over the violation of the U.S. Law bordering on the offer and payment of illegal remuneration in a health care matter.

Although she was ordered to report for service of her sentence on April 4, 2011, she failed to surrender on that date.

Consequently, she was further charged with failure to surrender for service of sentence in violation of U.S. Law on March 4, 2013.

Credit: EFCC