Texas Arrests Two Nigerians for Alleged Election Fraud

On September 17, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the arrest of two Nigerian nationals, Helen Mayen Adams and Joshua Nmelichukwu Akpom, among seven foreign nationals in Texas for alleged offenses linked to the November 2024 US general election. The arrests resulted from a joint investigation involving the Texas Attorney General's Office, the US Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas, the FBI, and Homeland Security Investigations.

The cases are currently pending in federal court in Tarrant County, with no established convictions yet. Adams is charged with voting by an alien and making false statements of citizenship to register to vote, while Akpom faces a charge of making false statements in connection with a naturalization application.

Prosecutors allege that Akpom also voted in the 2018 general election, but no charges were filed due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. The investigation is part of a broader effort by Texas authorities to address potential non-citizen voting.