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Third of six Nigerians pleads guilty to U.S. tax-scam charges Tuesday Apr 25, 2017 at 5:06 PM Apr 25, 2017 at 5:14 PM Mark Freeman Mail Tribune @MTwriterFreeman A third Nigerian national has pleaded guilty for his part in a six-man ring that allegedly used stolen personal information from an Oregon firm to file thousands of bogus state and federal income tax returns over four years. Michael Oluwasegun Kazeem, 24, filed his guilty plea Monday in U.S. District Court in Medford to five crimes that were part of a 17-count indictment against him. He also agreed to testify against the remaining three defendants, including his brother, Emmanuel Oluwatosin Kazeem, should they go to trial, which is scheduled to begin July 31 in Medford. Michael Kazeem faces as much as 26 years in federal prison and deportation for mail fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft Kazeem admitted parlaying stolen person information from more than 250,000 U.S. taxpayers, including Oregonians, to file fake tax returns targeting more than $9.5 million but less than $25 million between 2012 and May of 2015, though prosecutors earlier said the group cleared about $4.7 million from the Internal Revenue Service. At least some of the information was hacked from a Lincoln City-based firm that conducts pre-employment background checks, court records state. Working via computers in Georgia, the men used that information to get PIN numbers used by the victims to electronically file IRS returns, court records state. They then obtained prepaid debit cards in the names of each individual or opened bank accounts in the name of a third party, court papers state. They also opened disposable email accounts to file false tax returns using online software such as TurboTax, with the IRS paying refunds directly to the debit cards or bank accounts, records show. Prosecutors allege the men wired at least some of the money to Nigeria via Western Union, but no amount was stated in court records. Kazeem's plea agreement states that the scheme began in early 2012 and ran until May 2015. The thefts targeted both the IRS and the Oregon Department of Revenue and included Oregon victims, but no tally of local or statewide victims has been stated in court filings. The case was investigated by IRS agents in Medford. The men were arrested in May 2015 in Georgia, where they all lived, and later transferred to Oregon for prosecution. In December, co-defendant Oluwatobi Reuben Dehinbo, 31, pleaded guilty to the entire 27-count indictment against him after refusing a government plea agreement. Oluwaseunara Temitope Osayinbi, 36, also pleaded guilty in a plea deal. Both face up to 20 years in prison at their scheduled May 18 sentencing. Awaiting trial along with Emmanuel Kazeem are Lateef Aina Animawun, 36, and Oluwamuyiwa Abolad Olawoye, 31. — Reach Mail Tribune reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman.