A Nigerian fugitive, Florence Enwerim Onyegbu, has been extradited to the United States to face further legal proceedings over a healthcare-related offence under US law.
Onyegbu was handed over to US authorities on Thursday, March 23, 2023, following an extradition process coordinated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in response to a request from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
According to the EFCC, US authorities had sought assistance in locating and apprehending Onyegbu over a case involving the alleged offer and payment of illegal remuneration in connection with a healthcare matter.
EFCC investigations reportedly established that Onyegbu had changed her name from Florence E. Onyegbu to Janet Boi in an attempt to conceal her identity.
She was eventually arrested by EFCC operatives at her residence in the Ojodu area of Lagos on February 21, 2022.
During the arrest, investigators reportedly recovered a Nigerian national identity card bearing the name Janet Boi and a Texas driver’s licence bearing the name Florence Enwerim Onyegbu.
The EFCC handed her over to the FBI on March 22, 2023, following an extradition order issued by Justice Z.B. Abubakar of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on December 2, 2022.
Onyegbu’s legal troubles in the United States date back to her arrest there on February 12, 2011.
She subsequently pleaded guilty to an offence involving the offer and payment of illegal remuneration in a healthcare matter and was sentenced to 46 months in prison.
She was ordered to report to begin serving her sentence on April 4, 2011, but failed to surrender as directed.
The failure to report for her sentence led to an additional charge in the United States on March 4, 2013, relating to failure to surrender for service of sentence.
Her subsequent arrest in Nigeria and extradition to the United States followed cooperation between Nigerian and US law-enforcement authorities.
The latest development brings Onyegbu back into the US legal system, where she is expected to face the outstanding legal consequences of her case.
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