Chicago – August 12, 2026
The U.S. Justice Department has charged 11 individuals in connection with a decade-long sham marriage immigration scheme that facilitated over 1,000 fraudulent marriages, primarily for Chinese nationals seeking green cards.
The Scheme
Federal authorities allege the criminal network operated from 2016 through July 2026, arranging marriages between U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to bypass immigration laws.
Some customers reportedly paid up to $100,000 per sham marriage, while participating U.S. citizens received approximately $30,000. The defendants used social media, word of mouth, and various advertising methods to market their fraudulent immigration services.
Charges and Penalties
The 11 defendants, including Amy Cheng, 72, and Xiao Mei Chan, 64, face charges of conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, immigration fraud, and encouraging unlawful residence. If convicted, they face combined maximum penalties of up to 15 years in prison.
Context: Trump’s Immigration Crackdown
The indictment comes days after President Trump signed two executive orders targeting birth tourism and narrowing birthright citizenship.
The orders direct the State Department and Department of Homeland Security to halt birth tourism practices and deny visas to those suspected of entering the U.S. primarily to give birth. Attorney General Todd Blanche called this one of the largest marriage fraud prosecutions in U.S. history, describing it as a “multimillion-dollar cottage industry” that subverted American immigration laws.
