A 56-year-old Nigerian woman residing in Lynn, Massachusetts, Gladys Adaeze Okafor, has been arrested and charged in the United States for allegedly voting illegally despite not being a US citizen.
The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced the case on Wednesday, September 16, 2026, saying Okafor was charged with unlawfully voting as an alien and was expected to appear in federal court in Boston.
According to charging documents, Okafor was born in Aba, Abia State, Nigeria, and obtained lawful permanent resident status in December 2022. She is not a US citizen and has not applied for citizenship.
Prosecutors alleged that in July 2022, she submitted a voter registration card in Lynn and signed a certification stating that she was a US citizen. The City of Lynn subsequently registered her to vote and she allegedly voted in the 2022 midterm elections.
It is further alleged that she submitted another voter registration form in October 2023, again checking the box indicating she was a US citizen, and voted in the 2024 presidential primary election.
The charge of unlawfully voting as an alien carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $100,000. She could also face deportation after completing any sentence imposed by the court.
