Texas Resident Sentenced For Conspiring To Defraud The Chickasaw Nation Department Of Health

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Nnamdi Felix Udeagha, age 39, of Humble, Texas, was sentenced to 27 months in prison for one count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and ordered to pay $214,908.34 in restitution.

The charge arose from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On February 5, 2025, Udeagha pleaded guilty to the charge. Between April and December of 2021, Udeagha conspired with others to obtain money and property from the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health through materially false and fraudulent pretenses. According to investigators, the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health received emails claiming to be from a legitimate vendor with instructions to wire payments to certain bank accounts. It was later determined the emails were created and sent by a member of the conspiracy, and the bank accounts were opened by conspirators to receive and distribute the fraudulently obtained funds. Udeagha facilitated the fraud by providing the bank account information to the co-conspirator who sent the bogus emails to the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health.

"This defendant tried to hide in the shadows of the internet to steal money from the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health, which was needed for vital medical programs and services," said FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater. "The FBI is committed to holding fraudsters accountable for the harm they cause the American people and our government institutions."

"Fraudsters like the defendant employ email compromise schemes to prey on even the most sophisticated business enterprises," said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson. "I commend the FBI for the skilled investigative work which uncovered Udeagha's criminal enterprise, and the Chickasaw Nation Department of Health for its work with law enforcement. This sentence demonstrates the U.S. Attorney's Office's commitment to pursuing white collar criminals who seek to exploit businesses in the Eastern District of Oklahoma."

The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearing. Udeagha will remain in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kara Traster and T. Cameron McEwen represented the United States.