A 48-year-old Nigerian social worker, Akeatha Diane Akintola, has been sentenced to five years in prison in Washington, United States, for stealing Social Security benefits intended for a disabled minor who is a member of the Snoqualmie Tribe.
The announcement was made by First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd in a statement released by the U.S. Department of Justice last week.
Akintola pleaded guilty to theft of public funds after admitting to stealing $17,638 meant for the tribal member.
At the sentencing hearing, Magistrate Judge S. Kate Vaughan said she was particularly troubled by the fact that Akintola had targeted a vulnerable victim.
“There is no one more vulnerable” than the victim in this case, Judge Vaughan said, describing the offence as an “ethical breach beyond imagining.”
According to court records, Akintola became a social worker for the Snoqualmie Tribe in January 2023.
In September 2023, she applied by telephone to become the Social Security Representative Payee for a minor child with intellectual disabilities who was under the care of the Tribe.
The child’s mother had died, leaving survivor benefits for the child.
The Tribe prohibits its social workers from serving as representative payees for children under its care. Despite this policy, Akintola used the child’s Social Security number along with her own information to apply for the role. Once approved, she arranged for the child’s benefits to be deposited into a bank account she controlled.
She then spent the money for her personal use, including making purchases at a retailer in North Bend.
In July 2024, after collecting the benefits for at least five months, Akintola accompanied her supervisor to the Social Security Administration to inquire about the missing funds.
When officials revealed that Akintola was listed as the child’s representative payee, she denied it to her supervisor.
She resigned from her position with the Snoqualmie Tribe the following day.
Addressing the impact of the theft, a tribal representative told the court:
“A social worker is meant to be a safekeeper and protector for children who have been stripped of their safety, family and stability. Ms. Akintola did not just fail in that duty; she weaponized her position of power to systematically steal from a grieving autistic child and undermine her future independence.
“This money was not a luxury. It was a lifeline. The defendant did not just steal money; she manufactured a false relationship of safety with a traumatized child, exploiting that unearned trust for financial gain.”
Akintola’s plea and sentencing hearing was initially scheduled for May 22, 2026, but she failed to appear.
Prosecutors later discovered that she had left the United States on May 20, 2026, travelling to Togo using a passport issued under a different surname.
She eventually appeared in court on June 17, 2026, where Judge Vaughan ordered her into custody to begin serving her sentence immediately.
In addition to the prison term, Akintola was ordered to pay $17,638 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.
She has also been permanently barred from serving as a Social Security Representative Payee in the future.
The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General (SSA-OIG) and the Snoqualmie Tribal Police.
Prosecution was handled by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica M. Ly, an attorney with the Social Security Administration who is specially designated to prosecute Social Security fraud cases in federal court.
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