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The Department of Justice announced Monday that it is moving to revoke the citizenship of 17 individuals who allegedly obtained naturalization through fraud or deception.
The individuals, from 13 different countries, are accused of serious criminal conduct, including child sexual abuse, narcotics trafficking and large-scale financial fraud.
Nearly all of the individuals reportedly lied during the naturalization process, claiming that they did not commit any crimes the authorities were unaware of, claims that were later found to be untrue or misleading. By making false statements, officials argue that they failed to meet the statutory “good moral character” requirement for U.S. citizenship under federal law.
“Gaining U.S. citizenship is a privilege and under the steadfast leadership of President Trump, this Department of Justice maintains a zero-tolerance policy for the abuse of this process,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.
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“American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly. If you come here break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin added.
According to the release, the accused individuals are overwhelmingly middle-aged to senior adults, ranging in age from 39 to 69, and originate from 13 countries across the globe.
Nine were from the Caribbean and North America, including Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and Mexico. Two were from Colombia in South America. One was from former Yugoslavia in Europe. Three were from Asia, including India, China and the Philippines, and two were from Africa, including Somalia and the Congo.
Officials said many of the applicants were asked under oath whether they had ever committed a crime for which they had not yet been arrested. According to authorities, many of the individuals allegedly provided false statements during their interviews, enabling their applications to be approved.
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The most common alleged offense among the accused is child sexual abuse. Six of the 17 individuals — roughly 35% — were identified in connection with child sex crimes, including statutory rape and the receipt of explicit images involving minors.
One notable case involved a Roman Catholic priest who allegedly used his position of trust to groom and abuse a child.
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The fraud cases also involved large-scale, multi-million-dollar schemes.
One case allegedly involved $54 million in securities and wire fraud. Another centered on $36.7 million in fraudulent claims billed to Blue Cross Blue Shield through fake physical therapy clinics. In a separate case, an individual was accused of using inherited funds tied to a Colombian drug cartel to finance real estate transactions, while another defendant was also accused of stealing millions from a Florida tribal casino.
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Several individuals allegedly fabricated their identities in an effort to circumvent the immigration system, the Justice Department said. Four individuals are accused of using false names, misrepresenting marital status to U.S. citizens, or reapplying multiple times under entirely different identities after previous denials.
One woman allegedly adopted a false name after being denied in 1995. Authorities said she was ultimately identified after the government digitized old paper fingerprint records, which linked her current identity to a prior, rejected application.
