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.

ICE chief vows to ‘flood’ Boston with agents after Dem mayor vows to resist

Fox News Politics Newsletter: Newsom’s ‘Failures’ Under Fire

Breaking: Active Shooter Report Was ‘Cruel Hoax’ – Villanova President Shares Truth Behind Orientation Nightmare

Fears About Un-Aired Footage of ‘Drowsy’ Biden Led Paramount to Settle with Trump: Ex-Chairwoman

James Dobson, Christian leader and Trump ally, dies at 89

Xi takes jab at Dalai Lama in Tibet, says ‘religious affairs’ must ‘adapt to socialist society’

Wes Moore’s primary rival switches to GOP, hoping to boost chances of beating Maryland ‘machine’

Biotech CEO sues Uber after illegal immigrant driver assault caught on camera in downtown Charleston, SC

Blue state investigates how illegal immigrant trucker got license before deadly Florida crash

Florida official confronts Newsom over crash tied to illegal immigrant trucker

ICE arrests illegal immigrant after failed sanctuary attempt at Colorado probation office

Op-Ed: Christian State Senator Makes the Case for Banning Porn

Cracker Barrel Suffers Serious Financial Blow as Markets React to ‘Woke’ Rebrand

Pentagon taps civilian employees to assist Trump administration immigration enforcement

DeSantis targets census ‘fix’ to boost GOP House seat count in Florida

“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.