₦airaland Forum

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Monday sentenced a Nigerian national to 41 months in prison for fraudulently obtaining a student visa and admission to the University of Missouri as well as a Social Security card, a driver license, a bank account and an apartment.

Mercy Ojedeji, 26, also participated in the money mule activities of Shirley Waller. Waller is serving a 93-month prison sentence after admitting aiding online scammers and committing pandemic and mortgage fraud. The government alleged that Ojedeji and Waller used a fraudulently opened bank account to funnel the proceeds of Waller’s criminal activities to Nigeria. A total of 193 packages were sent to the home Waller and Ojedeji shared, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office argued that the total intended loss of the pair’s activities was more than $1 million, based on the $94,150 contained in the 17 packages seized by law enforcement.

In a letter to Judge Autrey, one victim who lost $47,000 to the scam described being duped by a tale of a lonely, widowed orthopedic surgeon working in in a refugee hospital in Jordan. “It is a terrible shame there are such people existing to steal money from innocent victims such as myself,” she wrote. Another had their water cut off for a month due to non-payment after sending money to scammers.

Ojedeji pleaded guilty in April in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of unlawful use of fraudulent immigration documents and one count of wire fraud. He admitted using counterfeit academic transcripts, recommendations, a resume and a report about his English language proficiency to obtain a student visa from the University of Missouri and admission to the chemistry PhD program in the fall of 2023. Ojedeji also obtained a stipend and a tuition waiver worth more than $49,000. Ojedeji presented his student visa and other documents to the Social Security Administration to obtain a Social Security card and used the fraudulently issued Social Security number and other documents to open a bank account. He also used the Social Security number and documents produced by his paramour, Waller, to rent an apartment. After Ojedeji failed to attend classes, his assistantship or join a research group, the university terminated him from the graduate program in January 2024. This also resulted in the termination of his student visa. On Feb. 26, 2024, Ojedeji used his fraudulently obtained and now invalid visa and other documents to obtain a Missouri driver license. The driver’s license was subsequently used to open the bank account through which he and Waller forwarded the proceeds of Waller’s money mule activities.

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is charged with defending the nation’s mail system from illegal use. With the collaborative efforts of our federal and local law enforcement partners, Postal Inspectors investigate fraudsters who utilize the U.S. Mail to perpetuate financial schemes to defraud others in order to enrich themselves. Postal Inspectors seek justice for victims, including those most vulnerable,” said Inspector in Charge, Ruth Mendonça, who leads the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which includes the St. Louis Field Office.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, with the assistance of the FBI and the Town and Country Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry prosecuted the case.

Contact
Robert Patrick, Public Affairs Officer, robert.patrick@usdoj.gov.

Updated December 1, 2025

From successful Japa to jail...

And he chose Chemistry of all courses! Chemistry is not for morons.

Will she be deported back after her jail terms?

This is why i ignored ppl that blame their failures on Nigeria..

southsouthking:
Will she be deported back after her jail terms?

Which She... ?

That one na guy man wey dey answer Mercy..

Guyman refused to attend classes or join research groups because he was not there for that purpose.

He was there to defraud the system..

Check well, they may not be aware. Na just agents doing their thing to the detriment of the client.


Note: I didn't read the story pls.

Crime is not good, let us hustle legally

99 days for the thief, one day for the owner of the house.

He has decided his fate, from the first day he made the foolish move.

These are some of the reasons Trump government is restricting Nigerians from US visa

I don't know why people do crime when you can make it legitimately

All of us cannot be stupendously rich

Contentment is very important

Let's be contended with the little we have and work hard to make more

Don't do crime

It’s idiots like this that allowed Nigeria to be added to the travel ban list

He just wasted his life, deportation after serving his jail term.

Hi

lilsmart:
ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Monday sentenced a Nigerian national to 41 months in prison for fraudulently obtaining a student visa and admission to the University of Missouri as well as a Social Security card, a driver license, a bank account and an apartment.

Mercy Ojedeji, 26, also participated in the money mule activities of Shirley Waller. Waller is serving a 93-month prison sentence after admitting aiding online scammers and committing pandemic and mortgage fraud. The government alleged that Ojedeji and Waller used a fraudulently opened bank account to funnel the proceeds of Waller’s criminal activities to Nigeria. A total of 193 packages were sent to the home Waller and Ojedeji shared, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office argued that the total intended loss of the pair’s activities was more than $1 million, based on the $94,150 contained in the 17 packages seized by law enforcement.

In a letter to Judge Autrey, one victim who lost $47,000 to the scam described being duped by a tale of a lonely, widowed orthopedic surgeon working in in a refugee hospital in Jordan. “It is a terrible shame there are such people existing to steal money from innocent victims such as myself,” she wrote. Another had their water cut off for a month due to non-payment after sending money to scammers.

Ojedeji pleaded guilty in April in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of unlawful use of fraudulent immigration documents and one count of wire fraud. He admitted using counterfeit academic transcripts, recommendations, a resume and a report about his English language proficiency to obtain a student visa from the University of Missouri and admission to the chemistry PhD program in the fall of 2023. Ojedeji also obtained a stipend and a tuition waiver worth more than $49,000. Ojedeji presented his student visa and other documents to the Social Security Administration to obtain a Social Security card and used the fraudulently issued Social Security number and other documents to open a bank account. He also used the Social Security number and documents produced by his paramour, Waller, to rent an apartment. After Ojedeji failed to attend classes, his assistantship or join a research group, the university terminated him from the graduate program in January 2024. This also resulted in the termination of his student visa. On Feb. 26, 2024, Ojedeji used his fraudulently obtained and now invalid visa and other documents to obtain a Missouri driver license. The driver’s license was subsequently used to open the bank account through which he and Waller forwarded the proceeds of Waller’s money mule activities.

“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is charged with defending the nation’s mail system from illegal use. With the collaborative efforts of our federal and local law enforcement partners, Postal Inspectors investigate fraudsters who utilize the U.S. Mail to perpetuate financial schemes to defraud others in order to enrich themselves. Postal Inspectors seek justice for victims, including those most vulnerable,” said Inspector in Charge, Ruth Mendonça, who leads the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which includes the St. Louis Field Office.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, with the assistance of the FBI and the Town and Country Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry prosecuted the case.

Contact
Robert Patrick, Public Affairs Officer, robert.patrick@usdoj.gov.

Updated December 1, 2025

. Now it will be hard for genuine chemist to gain admissions.
After PhD in Chemistry in USA
Life is already set no need for any criminal activities .
Post doc for Saudi
Visiting lecturer Qatar
Green card holder US

Auntie don enter Pa Trump trap.May God have mercy on her

If he do the crime then he should do the time

So this lone case proved that Nigeria is not a zoo, with a system skewed to favor the politically exposed persons and their cronies?

RealLordZeus:
This is why i ignored ppl that blame their failures on Nigeria..

chipet67:
Check well, they may not be aware. Na just agents doing their thing to the detriment of the client.


Note: I didn't read the story pls.

Na the agent send him do fraud after obtaining visa and admission with oluwole documents.

U see why Oga TRUMP is dragging us ? Nah because of CRIMINALS like this. U manged travel out.The next is to constitute nuisance/begging around

dawnomike:
From successful Japa to jail...

Mindlog:
He just wasted his life, deportation after serving his jail term.

Don't be to quick to conclude. He can be deported back to Nigeria and he will contest and win governorship position in Nigeria.

An example of what not to do in the US
you’ll go to jail

“ fraudulently obtaining a student visa and admission to the University of Missouri as well as a Social Security card, a driver license, a bank account and an apartment”.

Effectively everything by fraud.

She got to America fraudulently to participate in fraud. Finally ended in jail. So she effectively got by fraudulent means, her visa to go to prison in America, stay in prison for four years and get deported to Nigeria completely empty, as they law will take all that she acquired illegitimately.

May God help her sha. She managed🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️ enter US,.The next stage is to do CRIME. May she not see TRUMP chasing her around

southsouthking:
Will she be deported back after her jail terms?

It's him not her. Even the name is suspect. Nigerian males hardly answer Mercy. Anyway, he will graduate after 41months(almost 3&half yrs)in jail.

MaziObinnaokija:
Auntie don enter Pa Trump trap.May God have mercy on her

This is bad!!

Didn’t they verify his transcripts before giving him admission

More so, for a phd program

These one don't joke around with crime. Petty or huge they would come after you.

Rule of law is what makes a sane society

Na wa ooo.

Now dem don ban Nigerians from US visa.

Hope una dey happy now

Ah...yet another royal subject to join of imprisoned monarch in the US.

At this rate, they will soon form a kingdom for them inside prison..or better still, a satellite state and their own polling booth