Eleven Individuals Charged in Florida Marriage Fraud Scheme Involving Military Members
In Florida, eleven people have been charged for their involvement in an alleged marriage fraud scheme. This scheme reportedly involved recruiting members of the U.S. military to enter into fake marriages with Chinese citizens.
According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a Chinese transnational gang orchestrated the scheme. The goal was to exploit U.S. immigration laws. By arranging these fraudulent marriages, the Chinese citizens aimed to obtain immigration benefits and, concerningly, access cards for U.S. military installations.
An acting Special Agent in Charge with HSI Tampa, emphasized the importance of stopping these kinds of operations. He said this case highlights how vital Homeland Security Investigations is in protecting the country. These groups try to take advantage of our immigration system, threatening our national security.
The fake marriages happened in different places, like Jacksonville, Florida, and also New York, Connecticut, and Nevada.
To make the marriages seem real, the people involved took photos of the couples. They wanted to create false evidence to show immigration officials, suggesting the couples were in love and committed to each other.
But the reality was different. The U.S. citizens who participated were promised money. They would get an initial payment for marrying the Chinese national, another payment when the person got legal immigration status, and a final payment after they divorced.
Several individuals face charges, including Anny Chen, Kiah Holly, Kin Man Cheok, Hailing Feng, and Xionghu Fang. Raymond Zumba, Brinio Urena, Morgan Chambers, and Jacinth Bailey, who are former U.S. Navy service members, have already admitted their guilt in connection to the same scheme. They are waiting to find out their punishment.
Federal prosecutors claim that Anny Chen, Hailing Feng, and Kin Man Cheok also conspired to bribe a public official. Raymond Zumba, who was in the Navy Reserve, allegedly offered a bribe to a person and their spouse who worked at Naval Air Station Jacksonville. This person worked in the office that gives out Department of War identification cards.
Zumba reportedly asked if the spouse would be willing to issue real, but unauthorized, ID cards in exchange for a secret payment. The person told the authorities about the plan and continued to talk with Zumba.
Zumba, along with Chen, Feng, and Cheok, traveled from New York to Jacksonville.
He took them to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, where the person’s spouse let them into the personnel office after hours and started the process for Chen and Cheok to get ID cards. The next day, Zumba met with the person, who supposedly gave him two cards in exchange for $3,500.
Zumba was then arrested, and the cards were taken back by the authorities.
