DOJ Launches Massive Denaturalization Campaign Against Fraudsters and Spies

The United States Department of Justice has initiated a significant expansion of its denaturalization campaign, filing civil complaints to revoke the citizenship of 12 naturalized Americans. The government alleges these individuals obtained citizenship through fraud, willful misrepresentation, or the concealment of criminal histories. Targets include individuals from Iraq, Somalia, China, India, Colombia, Morocco, Gambia, Bolivia, Uzbekistan, Kenya, and Nigeria.

Specific cases include Ali Yousif Ahmed, accused of al-Qaeda ties and murdering Iraqi police officers; Oscar Alberto Pelaez, a Colombian priest convicted of child sexual abuse; and Debashis Ghosh, an Indian businessman accused of a $2.5 million investment fraud. In a separate high-profile action filed in the Southern District of Florida, the DOJ is seeking to denaturalize former U.S. ambassador Victor Manuel Rocha, who admitted to spying for Cuba starting in 1973 while falsely claiming adherence to the U.S. Constitution during his 1978 naturalization.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche described the move as a correction of egregious violations of the immigration system. This initiative marks a sharp increase in the use of denaturalization, which averaged only 11 cases per year between 1990 and 2017. As part of a broader Trump administration strategy to increase deportations and national security, the Department of Homeland Security has been instructed to refer 200 cases for denaturalization monthly.