A federal grand jury has charged a Colorado aunt and nephew in connection with an immigration fraud scheme that processed fraudulent paperwork through Missouri, authorities announced following their arrests over the weekend.
Myra Paule Schulenburg, 46, faces a charge of conspiracy to commit immigration fraud. Her nephew, 30-year-old John Paule Rivera, is charged with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, making false statements under oath on immigration documents, making false statements to a federal agency, unlawfully procuring citizenship, and misuse of citizenship evidence.
Schulenburg, a Colorado resident, was born a citizen of the Philippines and later became a naturalized U.S. citizen. Rivera entered the United States in March 2017 on a J-1 exchange visitor visa.
A few months after Rivera arrived, Schulenburg filed a petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) claiming Rivera was her son so he could obtain a green card to become a lawful permanent resident.
The pair submitted an altered birth certificate from the Philippines as proof of the parental relationship. The petition and the altered record were sent to the USCIS National Benefits Center in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, for processing. The petition was approved, granting Rivera permanent resident status.
Rivera later enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, a branch he could not have joined without being a lawful permanent resident. His military service allowed him to apply for naturalized U.S. citizenship without having to adhere to the standard waiting period.
While stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, Rivera applied for citizenship. On his application, he denied under penalty of perjury that he had ever provided false or misleading information to government officials to obtain immigration benefits. The application was sent to the Lee’s Summit facility, approved, and Rivera took the naturalization oath on Oct. 11, 2022, in Springfield, Missouri.
The scheme began unraveling after Rivera became a citizen and submitted a green card petition on behalf of his biological mother. With that petition, he submitted his authentic Philippine birth certificate to the Lee’s Summit center. Officials flagged the discrepancy between the records, prompting the federal probe.
Under federal law, Schulenburg faces up to five years in prison if convicted of the conspiracy charge. Rivera faces up to 10 years in prison on certain immigration counts, as well as the potential loss of his U.S. citizenship. Maximum penalties are set by Congress, and actual sentences are determined by a judge using federal sentencing guidelines.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Nichols is prosecuting the case. The investigation was handled jointly by Homeland Security Investigations, the USCIS National Benefits Center, and the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
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