Authorities indicted 96 people and arrested 50 for a marriage fraud operation allegedly taking place in Vietnam and Houston.
A months-long Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) probe uncovered a criminal operation that enabled numerous foreign nationals to fraudulently obtain legal immigration status in the U.S., according to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement press release Monday.
Under the alleged terms of conspiracy, immigrant beneficiaries would pay around $50,000 to $70,000 to get married and score permanent resident status. The marriages were complete shams, according to the April indictment.
The spouses typically met only briefly before they obtained their marriage licenses and did not live together after becoming a “married” couple. The criminal operation behind the marriages would go so far as to produce fake wedding albums and falsified tax, utility and employment information — all in an effort to convince USCIS to approve the forms.
Wisconsin pizza factory worker crushed to death by robotic machine in horrific industrial accident
Nursing home resident, 95, charged with beating Holocaust survivor roommate to death with wheelchair pedal
Chuck Schumer questions whether Epstein was ‘the real reason’ Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was canceled
NYC comptroller tries to force way into ICE offices as security locks down federal facility
New Court Filing Accuses Ellen DeGeneres of Causing ‘Serious Personal Injury’ with ‘Negligent’ Driving
Biden’s chief of staff gave most damning testimony yet in autopen probe
Top four takeaways from House Oversight hearing on DC crime
Trump Provides Update on Autopen Scandal: ‘It’s Just Gotten Worse’
In Focus Forum: How should the conservative movement respond to Charlie Kirk’s assassination?
WATCH: Parody drug ad spotlights RFK’s crackdown on misleading pharmaceutical marketing
Pence warns against putting nation ‘on trial’ after ‘one person’ killed Charlie Kirk
Mark Zuckerberg Flounders Onstage as Latest AI Demo Fails: ‘I Don’t Know What to Tell You Guys’
Saudi Arabia signs defense agreement with Pakistan following Israel’s Qatar strike
Trump allows former UK leader Tony Blair to organize Gaza peace plan, post-war authority
Over Half of US Voters Support the Firing of Leftists Celebrating the Murder of Charlie Kirk
“These arrests mark the culmination of a comprehensive yearlong multi-agency investigation into one of the largest alleged marriage fraud conspiracies ever documented in the Houston area,” Special HSI Agent in Charge Mark Dawson said in a Monday statement. “By working together with our partners from various federal law enforcement agencies, we have sent a resounding message that we are united in our effort to disrupt and dismantle criminal organizations that seek to circumvent U.S. law by fraudulent means.”
The indictment alleges Ashley Yen Nguyen, 53, was the leader of the criminal scheme and had operatives working throughout Texas and Vietnam.
People involved in the conspiracy allegedly recruited U.S. citizens to act as marriage petitioners, who would then receive a cut of the proceeds from the beneficiary spouses. Several people who were recruited as petitioners eventually became recruiters themselves.
Marriage fraud or conspiracy to commit marriage fraud carries a sentence of up to five years in prison. The other charges — including mail fraud, conspiracy to commit mail fraud and tampering with a witness, informant or victim — all carry the possibility of 20 years in federal prison. A federal grand jury returned the indictment on April 30.
Wisconsin pizza factory worker crushed to death by robotic machine in horrific industrial accident
Nursing home resident, 95, charged with beating Holocaust survivor roommate to death with wheelchair pedal
Chuck Schumer questions whether Epstein was ‘the real reason’ Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was canceled
NYC comptroller tries to force way into ICE offices as security locks down federal facility
New Court Filing Accuses Ellen DeGeneres of Causing ‘Serious Personal Injury’ with ‘Negligent’ Driving
Biden’s chief of staff gave most damning testimony yet in autopen probe
Top four takeaways from House Oversight hearing on DC crime
Trump Provides Update on Autopen Scandal: ‘It’s Just Gotten Worse’
In Focus Forum: How should the conservative movement respond to Charlie Kirk’s assassination?
WATCH: Parody drug ad spotlights RFK’s crackdown on misleading pharmaceutical marketing
Pence warns against putting nation ‘on trial’ after ‘one person’ killed Charlie Kirk
Mark Zuckerberg Flounders Onstage as Latest AI Demo Fails: ‘I Don’t Know What to Tell You Guys’
Saudi Arabia signs defense agreement with Pakistan following Israel’s Qatar strike
Trump allows former UK leader Tony Blair to organize Gaza peace plan, post-war authority
Over Half of US Voters Support the Firing of Leftists Celebrating the Murder of Charlie Kirk
“Marriage fraud is a serious crime,” USCIS Houston District Director Tony Bryson said in a statement Monday. “This indictment reveals how successful our working relationships are with our law enforcement and intelligence partners when it comes to investigating marriage fraud. USCIS remains steadfast in our commitment to ensuring national security, public safety and the integrity of the immigration system.”
Story cited here.