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.
‘So Look…’: El-Sayed Answers Whether a ‘Jewish Zionist’ Has a Place in the New Democratic Party
Bombshell: CNN’s Entire Newsroom May End up Working for Elon Musk as Paramount-WB Merger Steamrolls Lefties
Biden-appointed judge hands Letitia James setback in latest Trump legal clash
Florida deputies taser sword-wielding burglary suspect, video shows
Top public university’s ‘LGBTQ+ lab’ hit with race-bias complaint amid $700K in Trump-era federal funding
Texas triple murderer uses last words before execution to send message to death row inmates
Ken Paxton Shuts Down Alleged Chinese ‘Birth Tourism Center’ Ahead of Race Against Talarico
Trump-Xi summit could hold key to lower gas prices, GOP chairman says
Italy Scrambles Warships Toward Red Sea as Houthis Close in on Global Shipping Chokepoint
Federal appeals court deals blow to Trump deportation agenda
MN Dem Sen candidate in hot seat over upcoming event hosted by man enveloped in fraud scandal: ‘Red flags’
Thune’s midterm crossroads: Keep the Senate working or let candidates campaign
Republicans face brutal midterm headwinds. Six forces could help them defy history.
Parents accuse Oregon hospital of making them drive dead baby home to Seattle: lawsuit
Tennessee cops raided man’s home after he criticized officer for speeding: lawsuit
“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.
‘So Look…’: El-Sayed Answers Whether a ‘Jewish Zionist’ Has a Place in the New Democratic Party
Bombshell: CNN’s Entire Newsroom May End up Working for Elon Musk as Paramount-WB Merger Steamrolls Lefties
Biden-appointed judge hands Letitia James setback in latest Trump legal clash
Florida deputies taser sword-wielding burglary suspect, video shows
Top public university’s ‘LGBTQ+ lab’ hit with race-bias complaint amid $700K in Trump-era federal funding
Texas triple murderer uses last words before execution to send message to death row inmates
Ken Paxton Shuts Down Alleged Chinese ‘Birth Tourism Center’ Ahead of Race Against Talarico
Trump-Xi summit could hold key to lower gas prices, GOP chairman says
Italy Scrambles Warships Toward Red Sea as Houthis Close in on Global Shipping Chokepoint
Federal appeals court deals blow to Trump deportation agenda
MN Dem Sen candidate in hot seat over upcoming event hosted by man enveloped in fraud scandal: ‘Red flags’
Thune’s midterm crossroads: Keep the Senate working or let candidates campaign
Republicans face brutal midterm headwinds. Six forces could help them defy history.
Parents accuse Oregon hospital of making them drive dead baby home to Seattle: lawsuit
Tennessee cops raided man’s home after he criticized officer for speeding: lawsuit
“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.
