US Law Enforcement Agencies Detain 10 Indian Americans in Visa Scam Case

The US is a widely preferred immigration destination even while some people cut corners to enter it. And helping them in their endeavors are the professional visa frauds. But many a time, their activities catch the attention of the US law enforcement organizations and the former end up behind the bars, rightfully so.   
     
In a not-too-positive development--from the Indian perspectives--the US law enforcement agencies have reportedly taken into custody 21 persons, and this include 10 Indian Americans, on the allegations of visa scam related to nearly 1,000 overseas students.

As per the US Department of Justice, apprehended in Washington, New York, Virginia, and New Jersey these 21 persons were brokers, and recruiters/job-providers who allegedly plotted with over 1,000 overseas people to illegally get student and foreign worker visas, via a New Jersey based "pay to stay" college.

According to the concerned US attorney, the arrests--which were made achievable by the wonderful undercover efforts of the American law enforcement partners--prevented 21 brokers, recruiters and owners across many states who irresponsibly took advantage of the US immigration arrangement for monetary benefits.

He added that Pay to Stay schemes not just harm the view of genuine student and foreign worker visa schemes, they also present an incredibly real threat to the US national security.

The defendants--many of whom ran and managed recruiting organizations for purported international students--were taken into custody for their involvement in an alleged scheme to register overseas people as students in the University of Northern New Jersey (UNNJ)--a Cranford, New Jersey based purported for-profit college.

Federal agents had brought the UNNJ into existence in the month of September 2013. Through the UNNJ, the HSI agents covertly probed criminal actions liked with the Student and Exchange Visitor Programme (SEVP), comprising, but not restricted to, student visa racket and the harboring of migrants for earnings.

While the UNNJ was not staffed with teachers or educationalists, it had no syllabus and carried-out no actual classes or education action.

The Justice Department pointed-out that the UNNJ functioned exclusively as a storefront place with tiny bureaus staffed by federal agents masquerading as school overseers/managers.

Through the examination, the HSI special agents recognized 100s of overseas people, chiefly from India & China, who earlier gained admission into the US on the F-1 non-immigrant Student Visas, to go to other SEVP recognized schools.

Via different recruiting firms and business bodies situated in New York, Virginia, New Jersey, Illinois, and California the defendants subsequently facilitated roughly 1,076 of these overseas people--all of whom were enthusiastic co-conspirators in the plan--to falsely maintain their nonimmigrant position in the US, on the bogus pretence that they kept on taking part in full courses of study at the UNNJ.

During the course of their dealings with the undercover agents, the defendants completely accepted that none of their overseas national customers would be present at any real courses, receive genuine credits, or make academic advancement toward a genuine degree in a specific domain of study, the Justice Department continued.