Romford father of two jailed for immigration offences
Olanrewaju Oloruntele - Credit: Archant
A father of two young children has been jailed for two years after he assumed the identity of an American to live illegally in the UK.
Olanrewaju Oloruntele, 39, of Priestley Gardens, Romford, spent $20,000 (nearly £12,000) on a fake US passport and birth certificate in Nigeria where he was born.
Oloruntele was sentenced on Friday at Snaresbrook Crown Court and may face deportation at the end of his sentence.
He is in a relationship with a British woman, the mother of his children, who was unaware of his fraudulent activity.
Oloruntele was arrested at his home on May 20 by officers from the Home Office’s criminal and financial investigations team, which consists of immigration enforcement officers working alongside police.
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He pleaded guilty to possessing a false ID document, obtaining leave to enter the UK by deception, and perjury.
Denise Robinson, from the Home Office’s criminal and financial investigations team, said: “Oloruntele was determined to come to the UK by fair means or foul. Having had visa applications in his true identity refused he decided to go down the criminal route.
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“He embraced his fraudulent US identity. His children’s births were registered in that name and his partner was unaware of his fraud. They are all now having to come to terms with what he has done.
“The message to those who seek to abuse the UK immigration system is clear. We will catch you and bring you to justice.”
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