The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has directed Nigerian student Lola Akinlade to leave the country after it was revealed that she used a fraudulent acceptance letter to secure a study visa and work permit. Akinlade, who completed a diploma in Social Services from Nova Scotia Community College in 2019, shared her distressing story with CBC News on Thursday.
Akinlade’s Experience
Akinlade’s troubles began when she discovered, just weeks before graduating from her new institution, that the acceptance letter provided by an agent for the University of Regina in 2016 was fraudulent. The mother of two described her feelings of joy mixed with anxiety as she realized the gravity of relying on a fake document to obtain her study permit. “I was devastated. That was the beginning of my trauma,” she recounted.
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Initial Contact with IRCC
When contacted by the IRCC, Akinlade requested a review of her case, asserting that she was a victim of a “rogue agent” who had provided her with the fake acceptance letter. “Please review my file. I just want this to be resolved,” she pleaded.
The Journey to Canada
Akinlade’s journey to Canada began in 2015 while she was employed as a medical sales representative in Lagos and holding a business administration degree from a Nigerian university. She met an individual who claimed to be an immigration consultant and offered to assist her in applying for a master’s degree in business administration at a Canadian university.
Without specifying a particular university, Akinlade provided the agent with the necessary documents and payment. Months later, she received a study permit, plane tickets, and an acceptance letter from the University of Regina. She arrived in Canada in late December 2016, anticipating to start classes in January 2017. However, she was informed en route to Regina that there were no spaces available and she would need to be waitlisted.
Search for a New School
Upon arriving in Canada, Akinlade independently searched for a new school and program, eventually enrolling at Nova Scotia Community College in September 2017 for a social services program. She chose this field due to its alignment with her previous work experience in the medical sector.
Discovery of the Fraud
Akinlade only contacted the University of Regina directly two years later when she received a letter from the IRCC indicating that the acceptance letter was fake. “I was sceptical, thinking it might be a misunderstanding,” she said. “So, I immediately contacted the University of Regina and that was when I learned the truth,” she added.
Agent’s Response
When CBC reached out to the agent, Babatunde Isiaq Adegoke, he confirmed providing the acceptance letter but claimed it was sourced from a company in Ejigbo, Lagos State, called Success Academy Education Consult, which he had engaged. Adegoke stated he guided Akinlade through the application process but denied informing her of a waitlist at the University of Regina.
Consequences and Impact
Akinlade’s study permit in Canada was invalidated due to the fraudulent letter, and her attempts to apply for a postgraduate work permit and a temporary resident permit were unsuccessful. In March 2023, an IRCC officer concluded that Akinlade likely knew the document was fake “on the balance of probabilities.”
Her husband, Samson Akinlade, and their eight-year-old son, David, who joined her in Nova Scotia in 2018, have also lost their temporary resident status. Their younger son, born in Canada in 2021, has Canadian citizenship but lacks medical coverage due to his parents’ status. “We’ve been surviving on our savings, and I don’t know how long we can continue doing that,” Akinlade said. “It’s really, really hard,” she added.
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