News release originally published by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut
Five Individuals Involved in Marriage Fraud Scheme Plead Guilty
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NEW HAVEN, Conn. — John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that five individuals have pleaded guilty in Hartford federal court to charges related to their participation in fraudulent marriages so that non-U.S. citizens would receive U.S. immigration benefits. The fifth defendant pleaded guilty this afternoon.
According to court documents and statements made in court, four of the defendants are U.S. citizens who entered into one or more fraudulent marriages with non-citizens, and sponsored each non-citizen’s fraudulent application for lawful permanent resident (“LPR”) status, also known as a “green card.” A fifth defendant is a non-citizen who entered into a fraudulent marriage with a U.S. citizen to obtain green card status.
On February 4, 2019, Marvin Williams, 60, of New York, New York, pleaded guilty and admitted that he entered into four fraudulent marriages with non-citizens, and sponsored all four of their fraudulent LPR/green card applications.
On March 6, 2019, Ricky Owen, 39, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty and admitted that he entered into two fraudulent marriages with non-citizens, and sponsored both of their fraudulent LPR/green card applications.
On April 1, 2019, Kenol Noel, 35, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty and admitted that he entered into two fraudulent marriages with non-citizens, and sponsored both of their fraudulent LPR/green card applications.
On April 24, 2019, Dwight Henry, 44, a citizen of Jamaica residing in Queens, New York, pleaded guilty and admitted that he entered into a fraudulent marriage with a U.S. citizen, and submitted a fraudulent application for LPR/green card status.
Today, Carl Jarrett, 36, of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty and admitted that he entered into a fraudulent marriage with a non-citizen, and sponsored her fraudulent LPR/green card application.
Each of the five defendants, who were arrested in November 2018 after they were charged by indictment, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit marriage/immigration fraud. At sentencing, each faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.
This investigation is being conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Office of Fraud Detection and National Security. The cases are being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry K. Kopel.
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