Justice Department Charges 11 in Marriage Fraud Scheme

The Justice Department announced criminal charges against 11 individuals accused of running a large-scale marriage fraud operation on Wednesday. This scheme reportedly involved over 1,000 fraudulent marriages between Chinese nationals and U.S. citizens.

The 21-page indictment was filed in the Southern District of New York. It claims the operation took place from 2016 to 2026 and was organized by Amy Cheng, Xiao Mei Chan, and Gang Zheng.

According to the indictment, these sham marriages aimed to help Chinese nationals secure green cards in the U.S. Defendants allegedly used word of mouth, social media, and various advertising forms to offer these fraudulent immigration services to citizens mainly from China. They facilitated sham marriages to support fraudulent applications for lawful permanent resident status.

Foreign nationals reportedly paid facilitators around $100,000 to arrange a sham marriage and file for a Green Card. Facilitators allegedly earned commissions of about $5,000 for each coordinated marriage.

The indictment contains photos of supposed sham marriage ceremonies that prosecutors claim the defendants used as evidence in U.S. immigration filings. Some ceremonies reportedly took place in nearby restaurants, with foreign nationals and U.S. citizens changing into traditional Chinese wedding attire. Facilitators, recruiters, foreign nationals, and U.S. citizens would invite friends and family to portray a genuine wedding setting.

While many recruiters operated in New York, the indictment alleges that these marriages were orchestrated across the U.S., including Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, and locations overseas such as Vanuatu and China.