Convicted Nigerian sprinter and former Olympic Games prospect, Godson Oghenebrume has been cited as a victim of USA prsident, Donald Trump’s controversial ‘take back America’ policy, which ikposes stringent clauses on immigrantsn and foreigners overstaying without valid visas.
Oghenebrume’s case is still drawing comments across the United States, with many Nigerian s and other Africans exxpressing symnpathy for him, after he was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison.
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However, many of those who expressed sympathy for him also admitted that he played into the hands of the law, especially after he pleaded guilty to a charge of illegally possessing a firearm while residing in the country on a student visa.
It has, however, been regarded as a very sad setback for the 23-year-old athlete, who once clocked a personal best of 9.90 in the 100 metres, won a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) silver medal, represented Nigeria in international competitions and earned an athletics scholarship to Louisiana State University (LSU).
His case becomes even more pathtic because he also faces removal or deportation proceedings after completing his prison sentence, but U.S. Attorney Kurt L. Wall praised the investigative efforts of the Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, as well as East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office.
The prosecution, which was led by Assistant United States Attorneys Jeremy S. Johnson and Lyman E. Thornton III, based their suit on what authorities admitted was part of ‘Operation Take Back America,’ which resulted from an altercation the athlete had with his ex-girlfriend.
The poicy has been dubbed in media circles as ‘a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.’
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana disclosed in a statement published on its website, “A Nigerian national residing in Baton Rouge was convicted for possession of a firearm by an alien admitted under a non-immigrant visa. He is also subject to removal or deportation from the United States upon completion of his sentence.”
It was gathered further that the emotionally shattering episode began on the night of February 7, 2025, when Oghenebrume was in his apartment with another young woman, but his ex-girlfriend, who is also the mother of his infant child, arrived with their baby.
Her arrival led to a confrontation outside the residence and, during the argument, while the infant was present, Oghenebrume discharged the firearm repeatedly, in what he later sai was an attempt to scare her off, but he eneded up exposing himself to public disorder charges, which many nieghbours witnessed.
However, presidnet of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), Chief Tonobok Okowa has assured that Oghenebrume will not be treated as a leper when he returns home, and promised that the athlete will be supported to get his career back on track after serving his sentence.
“It is sad but things happen in life. If he eventually gets deported, we will take him back.We are not happy to hear it but we will not reject him. He has the talent to come back and that will not be the end of his career,” Okowa told The Punch newspaper.
