Federal prosecutors charged 11 people in an alleged decade-long immigration fraud operation that arranged roughly 1,000 sham marriages, primarily for Chinese nationals seeking permanent U.S. residency, with some clients allegedly paying as much as $100,000.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Federal prosecutors have charged 11 people in what the Justice Department described as one of the largest marriage fraud cases ever prosecuted in the United States, alleging the defendants participated in a years-long operation that arranged approximately 1,000 fraudulent marriages to help foreign nationals obtain green cards.
The case, unsealed Aug. 12, centers on an alleged network that operated from at least 2016 through July 2026 and primarily served citizens of the People’s Republic of China seeking lawful permanent resident status in the United States.
According to the 21-page federal indictment, participants allegedly paired foreign nationals with U.S. citizens willing to enter marriages that existed for immigration purposes rather than legitimate marital relationships. Fraudulent applications were then submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services seeking permanent residency for the foreign spouses.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said those accused of operating the network included naturalized U.S. citizens originally from China and one lawful permanent resident.
“This is one of the largest marriage fraud prosecutions in United States history,” Blanche said during a press conference announcing the charges. “This scheme was not a quick fly-by-night operation but rather a years-long multimillion-dollar cottage industry to criminally assist people who would not, or legally could not, otherwise become citizens of the United States.”
The defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit marriage fraud and immigration fraud, as well as conspiracy to encourage aliens to reside unlawfully in the United States.
Prosecutors allege the operation functioned through a network of facilitators, recruiters and service providers who handled different stages of the process.
Foreign nationals seeking immigration status were allegedly matched with American citizens recruited to participate in fraudulent marriages. Attorneys, tax preparers, marriage officiants and other service providers were then used to help create documentation and advance immigration applications based on those unions, according to the Justice Department.
The indictment alleges that those involved actively sought customers through personal referrals and online outreach.
The defendants “used word of mouth, social media, and various forms of advertising to market fraudulent immigration services to foreign nationals—primarily citizens of the People’s Republic of China—including their ability to arrange sham marriages to facilitate fraudulent applications for lawful permanent resident status in the United States,” the indictment said.
Prosecutors allege the operation went beyond arranging marriages on paper.
The indictment includes photographs of wedding ceremonies that authorities say were staged to create evidence intended to convince immigration officials that the couples had entered genuine marriages.
“In some cases, these sham wedding ceremonies were held at nearby restaurants, where the foreign nationals and United States citizens changed into traditional Chinese wedding attire, and the facilitator, recruiter, foreign national, and United States citizen invited friends and family to create the appearance of a legitimate wedding,” according to the indictment.
The government alleges substantial amounts of money changed hands as part of the operation.
Foreign nationals allegedly paid facilitators as much as $100,000 to arrange and oversee the process, including locating an American citizen willing to participate in a sham marriage.
The participating U.S. citizens could receive as much as $30,000, prosecutors said. Those payments were allegedly divided into three installments corresponding with stages of the green card process.
Recruiters who located Americans willing to participate were allegedly paid commissions of approximately $5,000 for each U.S. citizen they brought into the operation.
Although prosecutors say the facilitators and recruiters were based primarily in New York, the alleged marriage arrangements extended well beyond the state.
According to the indictment, fraudulent marriages were facilitated throughout the United States and overseas, including in China and Vanuatu as well as Pennsylvania, Florida, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Kentucky, Connecticut and Georgia.
All 11 defendants are based throughout New York and were arrested Aug. 12, the Justice Department said.
Those charged are Amy Cheng, Xiao Mei Chan, Christine Lu, Jing Yan Ye, Xiao Yan Chen, Gang Zheng, Anthony Cheng, Michelle Duenas, Angela Duenas, Sigrid Cetino and Erika Johnson.
They were scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 12.
The allegations describe an operation in which the defendants allegedly coordinated multiple elements necessary to make marriages appear legitimate to federal immigration authorities, from recruiting American spouses and staging ceremonies to preparing supporting materials and submitting immigration paperwork.
According to prosecutors, the approximately 1,000 marriages connected to the operation were used to pursue lawful permanent residency for foreign nationals who otherwise would not have qualified through the alleged relationships.
The decade-long span alleged by prosecutors — beginning in at least 2016 and continuing until July 2026 — and the amount of money involved led Blanche to characterize the operation as a multimillion-dollar enterprise rather than an isolated series of fraudulent applications.
The defendants face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
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