By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Four Nigerians have been jailed in the United Kingdom for forging over 2,000 marriage certificates for their fellow countrymen.
It was stated that the convicts forged the certificates for Nigerians living in the UK illegally, and have been sentenced by the Woolwich Crown Court in London.
The four Nigerians jailed by the court are Abraham Alade Olarotimi Onifade, 41, Abayomi Aderinsoye Shodipo, 38, Nosimot Mojisola Gbadamosi, 31, and Adekunle Kabir, 54.
Onifade, from Gravesend in Kent, and Shodipo, from Manchester, were both found guilty of conspiracy to facilitate illegal entry into the UK and conspiracy to provide articles used in fraud. They were jailed for six years and five years respectively.
Gbadamosi, from Bolton, was convicted of obtaining leave to remain by deception and fraud by false representation and sentenced to six years.
Kabir, from London, was found guilty of possession of an identity document with improper intention but was cleared of obtaining leave to remain by deception. He was jailed for nine months.
According to the Home Office, they carried out the act between March 2019 and May 2023 and were also found to have provided false Nigerian Customary Marriage Certificates and other fraudulent documentation to help applicants remain in the country.
It was said that the four were part of an organised criminal group that made fraudulent EU Settlement Scheme applications for Nigerian nationals.
They were apprehended after an investigation from the Home Office in the UK and Lagos found more than 2,000 false marriage documents were facilitated by the group.
“This group was absolutely prolific in their desire to abuse our borders and have rightly been brought to justice.
“As with many gangs we encounter, their sole priority was financial gain. I am delighted that my team was able to intercept their operation, and I hope these convictions will serve as a warning to unscrupulous gangs who exploit people’s desperation to remain in the UK.
“We will continue to work tirelessly to secure our borders and clamp down on the gangs who prey on vulnerable people to make money,” the Home Office chief immigration officer, Mr Paul Moran, said.
Adedapo Adesanya