September 11, 2007

Key conspirator in massive marriage fraud scheme sentenced to three years
ICE probe revealed defendant arranged dozens of sham marriages

SANTA ANA, Calif. - One of the key conspirators in an elaborate Orange County-based marriage fraud scheme who admitted filing phony visa petitions on behalf of dozens of illegal aliens based on sham marriages to U.S. citizens has been sentenced to 37 months in prison.

Tina Tran, 47, was sentenced here yesterday by U.S. District Court Judge David O. Carter. As part of her sentence, Tran will be subject to three years of supervised release after she completes her prison term.

Tran's sentencing is the latest development in "Operation Newlywed Game," a landmark investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) targeting a marriage fraud scheme involving hundreds of Chinese and Vietnamese nationals. Tran, who recruited participants for as many as 70 sham marriages and filed more than 100 bogus visa petitions on behalf of fake spouses and stepchildren, was arrested in November 2005. At the time, she was in state custody for her involvement with a major identity theft and credit card fraud ring.

According to court documents, the marriage fraud scheme, which has so far resulted in the more than 50 suspects being charged, involved a loose-knit network of "facilitators," "recruiters," and "petitioners" based in Orange County's Little Saigon. At the heart of the conspiracy were the facilitators, including Tran, who charged up to $60,000 to orchestrate sham marriages for foreign nationals with U.S. citizens for the purpose of submitting fraudulent immigrant visa petitions on behalf of the aliens.

Since the foreign nationals often resided in Vietnam or China, the facilitators would make arrangements for the U.S. citizen petitioners to go overseas to marry the aliens. After the sham marriage, the facilitators assisted the petitioners and aliens with filing bogus immigration petitions. The facilitators would also coach the petitioners and the aliens on what to say at subsequent adjustment of status interviews to persuade the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer that the couple had a legitimate marriage. According to investigators, the suspects went to elaborate lengths to make the sham marriages appear legitimate, posing for wedding pictures, fabricating love letters, and even creating fraudulent joint tax returns.

In July, 10 United States citizens from Orange County and the San Gabriel Valley who posed as "spouses" became the latest defendants indicted in connection with the scheme. So far, the probe has resulted in the conviction of 49 defendants on charges including conspiracy, fraud and misuse of visas, making false statements in passport applications, marriage fraud, and inducing aliens to enter the country illegally.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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