The Justice Department has filed lawsuits seeking to revoke the citizenship of 40 naturalized Americans it says obtained that status unlawfully, as part of its crackdown on immigration fraud.
The targets of the latest action include people from China, Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan, Venezuela, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Mexico, according to the Justice Department. The cases involve offenses including acting as an agent of the Chinese government, committing voluntary manslaughter, and various forms of fraud.
“Today’s announcement marks the largest denaturalization effort in modern history,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement Monday. “From an individual convicted of espionage to others convicted of sexual offenses against minors, these defendants concealed critical facts from the U.S. government and represent serious criminal offenders.”
One of the targets of the Trump administration’s latest denaturalization effort is 60-year-old Cuban-born Javier Marrero-Pando, who in May 2020 forced a man with special needs to perform sexual acts against his will, according to the Justice Department. In October 2020, Marrero-Pando allegedly lied under oath that he had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested. DOJ says the false statement led immigration authorities to approve his application for naturalization.
Marrero-Pando, who resides in Georgia, was convicted after pleading guilty to aggravated sodomy in June 2022, according to the Justice Department. Marrero-Pando received a life sentence for his crime, with all but 15 years suspended.
The federal government can seek a court order revoking naturalized citizenship if it was obtained illegally or through concealment of material facts or willful misrepresentation. Naturalized citizens can also face denaturalization if they become members of or affiliate with certain organizations, including the Communist Party, terrorist groups, or another “subversive organization” within five years of becoming a citizen.
Naturalized citizens can also lose their status if they are discharged from the military “under other than honorable conditions” after obtaining citizenship based on their military service, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). They must have been discharged before completing “at least five years” of honorable service.
“Every single one of these individuals lied their way into U.S. citizenship,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This administration will continue to pursue the largest denaturalization effort in department history to restore trust and integrity in U.S. citizenship. Our message is clear: the United States will not tolerate deception in the naturalization process.”
Under previous administrations, federal authorities had an average of 15 denaturalization cases a year, a Justice Department official told NBC News.
In April, the Trump administration identified 384 foreign-born Americans to target for denaturalization, The New York Times previously reported.
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