The U.S. Department of Justice filed denaturalization lawsuits in multiple federal courts against 17 individuals, accusing them of securing their American citizenship through lies and concealment regarding major past crimes. The offenses listed in the complaints span from the sexual abuse of minors and child pornography to multi-million dollar bank fraud, illegal identity switching, and illicit drug trafficking.
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, the federal government can revoke U.S. citizenship and cancel naturalization certificates if the status was obtained illegally or through the willful misrepresentation of important facts.
Federal officials emphasized that citizenship is a privilege reserved for those who follow the law. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche stated, “When criminal aliens exploit the naturalization process by breaking the law, there are consequences. Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters. 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.”
He added that the agency continues to work with interagency partners to ensure citizenship is granted only to those who honestly earn it.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin echoed those sentiments, declaring that citizenship must be earned honestly.
“If you come here break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege,” Mullin said. He stated that DHS will not stand by while Americans are harmed by sex offenders, fraudsters, and drug traffickers who have gamed the system, vowing to use every lawful path to denaturalize and remove them. Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division added a direct warning, saying, “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.”
Court filings detail specific allegations against each of the 17 individuals:
Leidys Delmas Garcia, a 54-year-old native of Cuba living in Florida, was previously convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. The government notes she admitted in criminal proceedings to operating 30 physical therapy clinics that fraudulently billed Blue Cross, Blue Shield roughly $36,728,595 for unnecessary or unprovided services. She allegedly hid this under penalty of perjury during her naturalization interview.
Jean Claude Alfred, a 68-year-old native of Haiti who naturalized in 1994, is accused of repeatedly sexually abusing his minor daughter starting in September 1993, just a month before filing his citizenship paperwork. Alfred swore under oath that he had committed no unarrested crimes. He was convicted in 1996 of attempted sexual battery upon a child in a familial relationship and lewd assault.
Andrea Marroquin, a 44-year-old from Colombia and the daughter of a major drug trafficker, allegedly used her late father’s drug money to fund fraudulent real estate deals in Miami between 2003 and 2011. The government claims she gained permanent residency through a bigamous marriage and hid her wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering conspiracies to naturalize in 2009.
Maria Lourdes Montoya, a 63-year-old Mexican native, faces a five-count complaint filed on June 4, 2026. The DOJ alleges she claimed to be married to a U.S. citizen named Gilberto Montoya to get her residency and citizenship. In reality, Gilberto had died decades earlier, and her actual husband was Ernesto Orozco-Viramontes, a Mexican national who had stolen Gilberto’s identity.
Tahir Lekaj, a 43-year-old from Yugoslavia who naturalized in 2005, claimed under oath that he had a clean criminal record. In 2022, the State of Connecticut convicted him of two counts of sexually abusing a 10-year-old child starting in 2003, a timeline that overlapped with his naturalization process.
Talman Harris, a 49-year-old Jamaican native, allegedly participated in an eight-year stock manipulation conspiracy that tricked investors into pouring $54 million into controlled shares, leading to a $39 million loss. The fraud occurred while his naturalization was pending between 2012 and 2014, and he was convicted of wire and securities fraud in 2016.
Armando Mendoza, a 39-year-old native of Mexico who naturalized in 2011, allegedly began knowingly receiving sexually explicit images of minors as early as 2009. He claimed during his immigration interview that he had committed no crimes, but later pled guilty to the receipt of child pornography in 2013.
Neeraj Sharma, a 50-year-old from India and CEO of Magnavision LLC in New Jersey, allegedly filed 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions using forged corporate letterheads and executive signatures. He naturalized in 2017 after denying any criminal acts under penalty of perjury, but was subsequently convicted of visa fraud.
Federico Michel Fermin, a 54-year-old from the Dominican Republic, conspired to distribute over $1.7 million in prescription drugs wholesale without a license between 2004 and 2005, altering packaging to make the items look legitimate. He hid the crime during his interview and was convicted by a jury in 2011, receiving a 48-month prison sentence.
Abdikadir Ali Kadiye, a 54-year-old from Somalia, faces a complaint filed in Minnesota on June 3, 2026. He allegedly tried to enter the U.S. in 1997 using two different names. After his first application under the name Liban M. Degel was denied, he applied again as Kadiye, later admitting the double identity to border agents.
Victor San Shing Kwok, a 50-year-old from China, faces a complaint filed in Georgia on June 4, 2026. He allegedly sought entry in 1994 as Xin Cheng Guo. Following a deportation order, he married a U.S. citizen and hid both the previous denial and his active removal order to adjust his status.
Louise Hunkporti, a 64-year-old from the Congo, was denied an immigration benefit in 1995. She then adopted a fake identity to successfully naturalize in 2010. The fraud was uncovered after immigration authorities digitized old paper fingerprint cards and found a match between her two files.
Fernando Cristancho, a 69-year-old Colombian native and ordained Roman Catholic priest, used his position to groom and sexually abuse an 11-year-old parishioner. He later pled guilty to coercion and enticement, drawing a 22-year prison sentence. The DOJ alleges he hid the abuse from immigration officials to naturalize.
Ronnie Price, a 40-year-old from Trinidad and Tobago, naturalized in 2016 at age 30. He later pled guilty to statutory rape involving a female under the age of 16 that occurred before his naturalization. He is accused of falsely testifying that he had no unarrested crimes to hide the offense.
Rodger George Gurdon, a 55-year-old Jamaican native, participated in a conspiracy to steal and resell medical products from military hospitals, alongside a separate conspiracy to distribute over 100 kilograms of marijuana. He naturalized in 2011 and pled guilty to the federal charges in 2013.
Jheromell Obejera Arcilla, a 39-year-old from the Philippines, faces a June 5, 2026 complaint in Maryland. He allegedly abused his cousin’s 15-year-old daughter for over a year while his citizenship application was moving forward. He lied about the crime to officials and pled guilty to child sexual abuse in 2021.
Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres, a 40-year-old native of Cuba, allegedly helped hide millions of dollars stolen from a Florida tribal casino by her husband and co-conspirators through fake credit vouchers. She signed financial transactions to launder the money, but claimed during her naturalization interview that she had never committed a crime.
The Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Litigation led the prosecution of these cases. They received operational assistance from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and various U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country, including districts in California, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, and New Jersey.
READ: Border Czar Homan Rips Hochul’s Radical Anti-ICE Law, Warns Massive Federal Surge In NYC
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
