Nigerian Scam: Now the Fraudster Claims He's Married To You

Uh, guess what?

​Everyone knows about the notorious Nigerian Internet scam. Lesser known is the old Nigerian wedding scam. Well, actually it was just one guy (from Nigeria) named Emmanuel Ejike Anyanwu who claimed he was married to a U.S. citizen who was none-the-wiser in order to get a green card. He was eventually arrested while hiding in his sister's closet and was sentenced to more than three years in prison this week. 

Anyanwu, 36, claimed on his permanent residency application that he was married to a U.S. citizen, without notifying his so-called "wife." He turned in a sham marriage certificate to the Alameda County Recorder's Office and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

His plan bombed when the "wife" found her name was on a marriage certificate on file in Alameda County. Congratulations were not in order. 

It gets better. Anyanwu is seemingly part of a proud family of hucksters -- the third to be convicted after a federal jury trial before Judge Charles Breyer, in fact. His sister, Linda Ngozi Ashiegbu, was found guilty of making a false statement on an immigration document in December 2008. Another sister, Doris Akuyoma Anyanwu, was nailed for conspiracy and two counts of making false statements after a trial in 2008. (Both women have appealed.)  Emmanuel was arrested while hiding in Doris' apartment in May 2009.

A jury found him guilty on all counts of immigration fraud, conspiracy and aggravated identity theft, and was sentenced on Wednesday. Maybe he'll devise an elaborate plot to get out of jail, too.

Follow us on Twitter at @TheSnitchSF and @SFWeekly