The US Department of Justice announced legal proceedings against 17 naturalised US citizens for allegedly obtaining American citizenship through fraud, concealment of information, or false statements during the naturalisation process. According to the Justice Department, this represents one of the largest citizenship revocation drives in American history, with officials describing it as among the most expansive denaturalisation efforts ever undertaken by the federal government. The 17 individuals targeted span a range of serious criminal backgrounds, including violent offences, crimes against minors, drug trafficking, and immigration-related violations. The group includes individuals convicted of serious offences, including child sexual abuse, child exploitation, money laundering, wire fraud and other crimes, as reported by US officials. Among those named are immigrants from Haiti, the former Yugoslavia, Mexico, Colombia, Jamaica, Cuba and the Philippines, according to the Justice Department.
Among those named is Neeraj Sharma, a 50-year-old Indian-born entrepreneur and former CEO of Magnavision LLC, a staffing company based in New Jersey. According to the Justice Department, Sharma owned and operated Magnavision LLC, a staffing company that filed H-1B visa petitions on behalf of foreign workers. Federal prosecutors alleged that Sharma submitted 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions claiming the workers would be employed by a major global financial institution. The applications allegedly contained forged executive signatures of company executives and fabricated supporting documents, as reported by the Justice Department. The fraud occurred between April 25, 2015, to April 27, 2017, with Sharma knowingly signing under penalty of perjury and filing with USCIS these 11 H-1B visa petition packages during this period. Sharma was arrested in 2019 in connection with the visa fraud case and later convicted of Fraud and Misuse of Visas.
The government's case centres on statements Neeraj Sharma allegedly made during his naturalisation process. According to court filings, Sharma stated under oath during his 2017 citizenship application that he had never committed an offence for which he had not been arrested, never provided false information to US government officials and never lied to obtain immigration benefits. USCIS approved his application and Sharma was granted citizenship in December 2017. However, Sharma was later convicted in a visa fraud case linked to activities carried out between April 25, 2015, to April 27, 2017. Sharma was ultimately found guilty in April 2021 and sentenced to home detention for 10 months and 3 years of probation in 2021.
The move is consistent with the Trump administration's broader immigration enforcement posture, which has included aggressive action against both undocumented migrants and naturalised citizens accused of fraud in their path to citizenship. The Justice Department is now seeking to revoke Sharma's citizenship on the grounds that he concealed his wrongdoing and secured naturalisation through false representations, marking a significant escalation in federal immigration enforcement efforts. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche emphasized that "when criminal aliens exploit the naturalisation process by breaking the law, there are consequences," stating that the Department maintains a zero-tolerance policy for abuse of the naturalisation process. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin reinforced this stance, saying "American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly. If you come here, break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege." Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate added that "We will not turn a blind eye to those who unlawfully obtained US citizenship."
The denaturalisation actions are being pursued under the Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows the US government to revoke citizenship if it determines that citizenship was obtained illegally or through concealment of material facts or wilful misrepresentation. The Trump administration's denaturalization efforts represent a significant expansion of federal immigration enforcement. While the US government has long had the authority to revoke citizenship obtained unlawfully, such cases have historically been rare. Justice Department officials now say they are pursuing hundreds of referrals involving individuals suspected of securing citizenship through fraud or other disqualifying conduct. Those facing denaturalization will have the opportunity to challenge the allegations in federal court, and if citizenship is revoked, they could lose the protections of US nationality and potentially face deportation proceedings. This represents a fundamental shift in how the US government approaches citizenship fraud cases, with officials indicating this is part of a broader push to expand the use of denaturalization proceedings.
