The Department of Justice announced today that it has secured the denaturalization of two individuals who illegally obtained U.S. citizenship by not disclosing their prior criminal activity.
“Securing denaturalization is the final step to strip citizenship from those who conceal crimes or defraud the American people,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This administration will continue its historic denaturalization campaign to protect the value of U.S. citizenship.”
Nigerian Native Concealed Fraudulent Prior Passport Application.
On Oct. 13, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California entered an order revoking the citizenship of Vivian Chike Obichere. The Court held that Obichere illegally procured her citizenship.
Obichere is a native of Nigeria who has a long history of defrauding the U.S. government. In 1992, Obichere fraudulently used the name, social security number, birthplace, and birthdate of a U.S. citizen, “C.C.O.,” to illegally secure a U.S. passport. She successfully renewed that fraudulent passport in 2002. In 2003, Obichere became a lawful permanent resident under her true identity. Yet, in 2012 she once again attempted to renew the fraudulent passport issued under her alias C.C.O. At the same time, she also applied to naturalize under her real name. During her naturalization interview, Obichere orally testified under oath that she had not used the name C.C.O., and she did so knowing that her testimony was false and that she was lying to secure an immigration benefit.
In 2013, Obichere became a naturalized U.S. citizen at the same time that her scheme to defraud the U.S. government was unraveling. In 2015, Obichere was convicted of False Statement in Application and Use of Passport in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. As part of her criminal conviction, Obichere admitted to the aforementioned lies, as well as many others she had told the U.S. government over the years.
On July 30, the Department filed a denaturalization complaint against Obichere. On Oct. 7, the parties filed a joint motion for entry of a consent judgment revoking her naturalization. On Oct. 13, the court issued a Judgment revoking Obichere’s citizenship.
Cuban Native Concealed Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering.
On Oct. 14, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida entered an order revoking the citizenship of Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres. The court held that Acosta Torres illegally procured her citizenship.
Acosta Torres naturalized in 2015. Before that, she was part of a conspiracy to defraud a tribal casino in Florida. Her husband and several others stole millions of dollars from the casino by creating false credit vouchers. Acosta Torres engaged in various financial transactions involving the stolen proceeds to disguise the fact that the proceeds were obtained through fraud and to avoid transaction reporting requirements imposed by federal and state law.
During her naturalization application and interview in 2015, Acosta Torres claimed that she had never committed a crime or offense for which she had not been arrested. That was false because she had conspired to commit money laundering. She was convicted of her crime in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in 2020, and she was sentenced to six months in prison and ordered to pay nearly $150,000 in restitution.
On June 8, the Department filed a denaturalization complaint against Acosta Torres. On Oct. 13, the parties filed a joint motion for entry of a consent judgment revoking her naturalization. The following day, the court issued a judgment revoking her citizenship.