Ikwazema Eric Abakporo v. U.S. Attorney General

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedAugust 13, 2021
Docket20-12750
StatusUnpublished

This text of Ikwazema Eric Abakporo v. U.S. Attorney General (Ikwazema Eric Abakporo v. U.S. Attorney General) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ikwazema Eric Abakporo v. U.S. Attorney General, (11th Cir. 2021).

Opinion

USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 1 of 19

[DO NOT PUBLISH]

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ________________________

No. 20-12750 Non-Argument Calendar ________________________

Agency No. A078-201-679

IKWAZEMA ERIC ABAKPORO, a.k.a. Ifeanyichukwu Eric Abakporo,

Petitioner,

versus

U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL,

Respondent.

________________________

Petition for Review of a Decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals ________________________

(August 13, 2021)

Before MARTIN, BRANCH, and GRANT, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM: USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 2 of 19

Ikwazema Eric Abakporo, proceeding pro se, petitions for review of the

Board of Immigration Appeals’ order denying his motion to reopen or reconsider

and reissuing its dismissal of his appeal of the immigration judge’s final order of

removal. The immigration judge found Abakporo ineligible for cancellation of

removal because he had been convicted of an aggravated felony under 8 U.S.C.

§ 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii). After careful consideration, we dismiss Abakporo’s petition

for lack of jurisdiction as to the Board’s dismissal of his appeal and deny it as to

the denial of his motion to reopen or reconsider.

I.

Abakporo, a native and citizen of Nigeria, was admitted to the United States

on a visitor’s visa in 1996 and adjusted his status to lawful permanent resident in

2002. In 2014, he was convicted in federal court of conspiracies to commit bank

and wire fraud, in addition to substantive bank fraud, and aiding and abetting that

offense. In its judgment, the district court ordered Abakporo to pay $2,420,917.64

in restitution, including $36,521.02 to victim JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A., the

successor to Washington Mutual N.A. The judgment noted three additional

victims with amounts listed for the remaining restitution, but the words “relevant

conduct” were handwritten next to those amounts.

In 2018, the Department of Homeland Security initiated removal

proceedings against Abakporo by filing a notice to appear, charging him as

2 USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 3 of 19

removable under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) for having been convicted of an

aggravated felony, defined as (1) an attempt or conspiracy to commit a fraud or

deceit in which the loss to the victims exceeded $10,000, under 8 U.S.C.

§ 1101(a)(43)(U); and (2) a fraud or deceit in which the loss to the victims

exceeded $10,000, under 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(M)(i). Abakporo admitted the

factual allegations in the notice to appear but argued that his conviction was not an

aggravated felony and that he was therefore eligible for cancellation of removal

and adjustment of status.

Abakporo then moved to terminate his removal proceedings, arguing that the

restitution order in his criminal case was based on uncharged and unadmitted-to

conduct that was only proved by a preponderance of the evidence. He argued that

the victims did not suffer any actual loss because the fraudulent loans at issue were

fully repaid, that Washington Mutual actually profited by $6,000, and that the

restitution order was based on relevant conduct, so the Department of Homeland

Security had not proven by clear and convincing evidence that he had been

convicted of an aggravated felony as defined under § 1101(a)(43)(M)(i).

Abakporo attached to his motion a document titled “satisfaction of mortgage,”

which indicated that Chase Bank purchased one of the loans at issue as receiver for

Washington Mutual, and the loan was thereafter assigned to another institution, but

did not indicate whether Chase Bank recouped any of its losses when it assigned

3 USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 4 of 19

the loan. He also attached copies of payments made on the loan after Chase Bank

accelerated it, a worksheet he created explaining what he perceived as the district

court’s erroneous loss amount calculation at his criminal sentencing proceeding,

and an excerpt of his sentencing transcript where the parties argued the loss

calculation.

An immigration judge advised Abakporo that if he found Abakporo had

been convicted of an aggravated felony, Abakporo would not be eligible for

cancellation of removal, and that he should apply for any other relief he wished to

seek immediately. The immigration judge also told Abakporo that, depending on

the resolution of the motion to terminate, he might order Abakporo’s removal

before the next scheduled hearing. After the government responded to Abakporo’s

motion to terminate, Abakporo filed two replies, one counseled and one pro se,

arguing in both that the Department of Homeland Security had not carried its

burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence that the alleged victims of his

crime had incurred more than a $10,000 loss, because it had not presented any

evidence. He also reiterated that the district court had incorrectly calculated a

$36,000 loss to Washington Mutual and Chase Bank at his sentencing. He argued

that, even if the district court’s finding of actual loss was clear from the record, the

agency was not tied to the district court’s erroneous actual loss calculation and was

required to make its own determination of whether his crime resulted in a loss of

4 USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 5 of 19

more than $10,000 to a victim, including a consideration of the evidence he

submitted. Notably, an exhibit list Abakporo provided in anticipation of a hearing

did not include exhibits or proposed witnesses that were relevant to the loss

amount determination.

Without holding a hearing, the immigration judge issued a written decision

sustaining the charge of removability, denying the motion to terminate and

application for cancellation of removal, and ordering Abakporo removed to

Nigeria, after noting that he had considered the entire record and all of the

evidence. In so ruling, the immigration judge noted the Department of Homeland

Security’s burden and found that the restitution order indicated a $36,521.02 loss

to successor Chase Bank, which was corroborated by the sentencing transcript, and

which was based on conduct that Abakporo was charged for and convicted of.

Abakporo appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals. The Board

dismissed Abakporo’s appeal, finding no error in the immigration judge’s

conclusion that the loss associated with his convictions was more than $10,000

and, thus, that he had been convicted of an aggravated felony. The Board

explained that the Department of Homeland Security need only prove that the

potential loss to a victim was more than $10,000, and was not required to show

instead, as Abakporo had contended, that the actual loss exceeded that amount.

Nonetheless, the Board concluded, the district court found at sentencing an excess

5 USCA11 Case: 20-12750 Date Filed: 08/13/2021 Page: 6 of 19

of $36,000 in actual loss to Chase Bank, and the immigration judge had not erred

by considering the sentencing material Abakporo submitted in making its loss

determination. In addition, the Board concluded that the restitution ordered to

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Ishmail A. D-Muhumed v. U.S. Atty. Gen.
388 F.3d 814 (Eleventh Circuit, 2004)
Peter Balogun v. U.S. Attorney General
425 F.3d 1356 (Eleventh Circuit, 2005)
Clara Aurora Verano-Velasco v. U.S. Atty. Gen.
456 F.3d 1372 (Eleventh Circuit, 2006)
Julius Obasohan v. U.S. Atty. Gen.
479 F.3d 785 (Eleventh Circuit, 2007)
Calle v. U.S. Attorney General
504 F.3d 1324 (Eleventh Circuit, 2007)
Keungne v. U.S. Attorney General
561 F.3d 1281 (Eleventh Circuit, 2009)
Xue Xian Jiang v. U.S. Attorney General
568 F.3d 1252 (Eleventh Circuit, 2009)
Mei Ya Zhang v. U.S. Attorney General
572 F.3d 1316 (Eleventh Circuit, 2009)
Kazemzadeh v. U.S. Attorney General
577 F.3d 1341 (Eleventh Circuit, 2009)
Nijhawan v. Holder
557 U.S. 29 (Supreme Court, 2009)
Yu Xia v. U.S. Attorney General
608 F.3d 1233 (Eleventh Circuit, 2010)
Accardo v. U.S. Attorney General
634 F.3d 1333 (Eleventh Circuit, 2011)
Abdulkadir Haji Dakane v. U.S. Attorney General
399 F.3d 1269 (Eleventh Circuit, 2005)
Sammir A. Poveda v. U.S. Attorney General
692 F.3d 1168 (Eleventh Circuit, 2012)
Anderson Ferreira v. U.S. Attorney General
714 F.3d 1240 (Eleventh Circuit, 2013)
Nasrallah v. Barr
590 U.S. 573 (Supreme Court, 2020)
United States v. Julio Estrada
969 F.3d 1245 (Eleventh Circuit, 2020)
Heloyne Dos Santos v. U. S. Attorney General
982 F.3d 1315 (Eleventh Circuit, 2020)
Beverli Garcia-Simisterra v. U.S. Attorney General
984 F.3d 977 (Eleventh Circuit, 2020)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Ikwazema Eric Abakporo v. U.S. Attorney General, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ikwazema-eric-abakporo-v-us-attorney-general-ca11-2021.