Nearly 100 Indicted, 50 In Custody After Ice Uncovers Large-Scale Marriage Fraud Scheme

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.

House GOP slammed by conservatives for joining Dems on controversial ‘kill switch’ amendment

Trump keeps Macron under spotlight as Greenland talks grind forward from Davos

Dem. Rep. Melts down Over Boy, 5, Rescued by ICE – But Where Was She When Biden Left 300k Kids to Sex Trafficking and/or Abandonment?

She Hurt for Him: Priceless Video Shows Woman Behind Jack Smith Looking Like She’s in Physical Pain as GOP Reps Repeatedly Expose Him as Fraud

Trump Yanks ‘Prestigious’ Board of Peace Offer from Canada After War of Words at Davos

Venezuelan national accused of claiming control over Arizona community, threatening residents: report

Former Uvalde school officer says he doesn’t regret actions after not guilty verdict

J6 Cop Coughs Vulgar Curse to Republican Rep During Jack Smith Hearing

Liberal activist groups organize Minneapolis high schoolers to protest against ICE

Border Patrol union chief touts high morale despite clashes with agitators: ‘They are patriotic’

WATCH: Former ICE director reveals what goes into agency’s decisions on cities to target

Democrats push to blacklist ICE officers from future government jobs

NEA insider blows whistle on ‘toxic’ culture and far-left politics inside teachers union: ‘It’s a cult’

Trump Forces the Fake News to Stare at the Mugshots of Violent Illegal Criminals Caught By ICE

GOP Barely Passes DHS, ICE Funding Thanks to 7 Democrats Who Defied Their Party

“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.