At least 287 Nigerians are languishing in U.S. prisons for crimes ranging from drug trafficking, theft, romance scam, wire fraud and sex offences.
Data exclusively obtained by The Gazette showed the number of Nigerians in U.S. federal prisons. The data showed the number of Nigerian inmates and their offence category as of May 9, 2026.
Two hundred and eighty-seven Nigerians, including 18 with pending sentences, are incarcerated in America prison, far away from their home country for various crimes, as of May 9, 2026.
The number of Nigerians jailed for fraud, bribery and extortion was 163. The U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons did not mention names of the Nigerian inmates serving different jail terms.
Sixty-one Nigerians are in prison for buglary/larceny. Twenty-six were imprisoned for drugs-related offences, five for illegal possession of weapons and explosives, another five serving time for sex offences.
Additionally, four Nigerians are serving prison sentences for miscellaneous offense, while five are serving jail terms for homicide/aggravated assult, counterfeit/embezzelment, immigration fraud, robbery and continuous criminal enterpr, the data showed.
There are known Nigerian faces who had cooled or are cooling their heels in U.S. gaols, including notorious internet fraudster, Ramon ‘Hushpuppi’ Abbas, Forbes-celebrated businessman, Invictus Obi, Oba Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu land in Osun state, ex-NNPC chief Paulinus Okoronkwo, and a professor, Nkechy Ezeh.
Speaking on the growing number of Nigerians incarcerated in U.S. prisons, Christopher Isike, a professor of African Politics and International Relations in University of Pretoria, South Africa, said, “Increasing cases of Nigerians jailed aborad for criminality have significant implication for Nigeria’s international image and also for broader perception of Africans and Africa in global political and economic discusses.
“It tends to reinforce long standing negative stereotypes that associate ls Nigeria with criminality. This could subject innocent Nigerians to profiling, strigent visa laws and dehumanising immigration policies in the international sphere.”
The South Africa-based professor told The Gazette that the rising number of Nigerian criminals caught and jailed in the U.S. “damages our soft power and effort by successive Nigerian government to project Nigeria as Africa’s giant and a good destination for investment”.
“Nigeria projects enormous influence through our Nollywood and music. We have a Nobel Laurete in literature, we are also known for our prowess in football—sports,” stated Mr Isike. “We are known for these positive things but we are also known for negatives things. It’s what we call dual soft power dilemma.”
He added, “It affects Africa because many tend to racialise it. Nigeria being the most populous, many tend to see all Africans or black people in Europe as Nigerians. So it reinforcing afropessismism narrative that portrays Africa as a corrupt continent with weak institutions. Africans are framed not as productive migrants but as invaders, people that are anti-development, criminals that must be profiled, surveiled and deported.”
In the first quarter of 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security released a list of 110 convicted Nigerian criminals, listed among “worst of the worst” villains in America.
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