A 56-year-old Nigerian national living in Massachusetts has been arrested and charged with allegedly voting in a U.S. federal election despite not being an American citizen.
Gladys Adaeze Okafor, who lives in Lynn, Massachusetts, is accused of registering to vote while falsely declaring that she was a U.S. citizen and subsequently voting in the November 2022 federal midterm election.
She is also alleged to have voted in the March 2024 presidential primary.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced the arrest on Wednesday, September 16, saying Okafor faces a federal charge of unlawful voting as an alien.
According to the federal complaint, Okafor was born in Aba, Nigeria, and obtained lawful permanent resident status in December 2022. She is not a U.S. citizen and, according to prosecutors, has never applied for U.S. citizenship.
The complaint alleges that Okafor submitted a voter registration form in July 2022, before obtaining permanent resident status, and answered “Yes” when asked whether she was a U.S. citizen.
She also signed a certification stating that she was a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury. The City of Lynn subsequently registered her to vote, and election records show that she cast a ballot in the November 8, 2022 election.
Prosecutors allege that Okafor submitted another voter registration form in October 2023, again identifying herself as a U.S. citizen. The complaint says Lynn election records show that she subsequently voted in the March 5, 2024 presidential primary.
The complaint also says Okafor acknowledged during an interview with investigators on September 10, 2026, that she had completed and submitted the two voter registration forms.
The federal charge carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $100,000. Prosecutors said Okafor could also face deportation after completion of any sentence imposed.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julissa Walsh of the Major Crimes Unit.
Case comes amid US voter-fraud crackdown
Okafor’s arrest comes as federal authorities in the United States step up investigations into alleged voter and benefits fraud.
In March, U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the creation of a Benefit and Voter Fraud Team in Massachusetts to investigate alleged fraud involving public benefits and elections. The team includes investigators from several federal agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday announced charges against 16 people across the country in cases involving alleged illegal voting, false claims of U.S. citizenship and other election-related offences. Okafor was among those listed in the department’s nationwide announcement.
The Justice Department said the cases include alleged unlawful voting by non-citizens in federal elections and false statements made to register or vote.
Okafor’s case remains pending. The allegations in the criminal complaint have not been proven in court, and she is presumed innocent unless and until she is found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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