Washington: The US Department of Justice has launched proceedings to revoke the citizenship of 17 naturalised Americans accused of concealing crimes or lying during the immigration process, including an Indian-origin businessman convicted in a visa fraud case.
The Justice Department said Monday, June 8, that the denaturalisation actions, filed in federal courts across the country, target individuals accused of offences ranging from sexual abuse of minors and healthcare fraud to money laundering, securities fraud and immigration-related crimes.
Among those named is Neeraj Sharma, 50, a native of India and former owner and chief executive officer of New Jersey-based staffing company Magnavision LLC.
According to the Justice Department, Sharma signed and filed 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions containing false representations that workers would be employed by a global financial institution. The petitions allegedly included forged signatures of company executives.
In 2017, Sharma applied for US citizenship and, according to the complaint, falsely stated under penalty of perjury that he had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested, never provided false information to US government officials and never lied to obtain immigration benefits.
The Justice Department said Sharma became a US citizen in December 2017. He was later convicted of fraud and misuse of visas for conduct that occurred between April 2015 and April 2017.
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The government is seeking to revoke his citizenship, alleging that he failed to disclose unlawful acts, provided false testimony and concealed material facts during the naturalisation process.
Announcing the actions, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said, “When criminal aliens exploit the naturalisation process by breaking the law, there are consequences. Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters.”
“Gaining US 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,” he said.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said citizenship “must be earned honestly”.
“If you come here break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege,” Mullin said.
The Justice Department said the 17 cases involve individuals originally from India, China, Haiti, Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, Jamaica, Somalia, the Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago and several other countries.
Many of the complaints allege that the individuals committed crimes during the period in which they were required to demonstrate “good moral character” for naturalisation. Others involve allegations that applicants concealed key information or provided false testimony to immigration authorities.
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said, “We will not turn a blind eye to those who unlawfully obtained U.S. citizenship.”
“Anyone thinking they can defraud the naturalization process should think again. We will continue to pursue anyone who unlawfully or fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship,” he added.
The Justice Department noted that the lawsuits are civil actions and that the allegations remain unproven.
“The claims made in the complaints are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability,” the department said.
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, US citizenship may be revoked if it was obtained illegally or through concealment of material facts or wilful misrepresentation. Denaturalisation cases are uncommon but have periodically been used by federal authorities in cases involving fraud, national security concerns and serious criminal conduct.
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