Fatima DeMaria, Immigration Fraud, Pennsylvania 2024

By Emily J. Miller, Crime Reporter for Grimy Times

A shocking case of immigration fraud has come to light in Chester County, Pennsylvania, with the indictment of 65-year-old Fatima DeMaria, owner and operator of Immigration Matters Legal Services in Oxford, PA.

According to the indictment, DeMaria falsely represented herself to clients and prospective clients as an immigration attorney who could help undocumented aliens obtain employment authorization or ‘work permits.’ However, DeMaria was neither a licensed attorney, nor accredited or authorized by the Executive Office for Immigration Review (‘EOIR’) to represent individuals in immigration proceedings.

Between December 2021 and July 2024, DeMaria prepared and caused to be prepared fraudulent Form I-589 asylum applications in her clients’ names, without their knowledge or consent. She knowingly made and aided and abetted the making of false and material misstatements in the I-589 asylum applications.

For example, the defendant caused to be stated on each asylum application that the applicant was ‘seeking asylum or withholding of removal’ based on ‘political opinion’ and ‘Torture Convention.’ Her clients, however, were not seeking asylum based on either of these categories, and never informed DeMaria or anyone at Immigration Matters Legal Services of facts that could make them eligible for asylum under either of these categories.

DeMaria charged her clients approximately $6,000-$9,000 per individual, and $12,000-$15,000 per couple, for her purported legal services in conjunction with their applications. She also frequently had her clients pay her in cash or peer-to-peer transactions that were deposited into her personal bank accounts, with hundreds of thousands of dollars of which were withdrawn at casinos.

If convicted, DeMaria faces a maximum possible sentence of 240 years’ imprisonment and a $4 million fine. The government is also seeking forfeiture of the defendant’s alleged ill-gotten earnings, which are alleged to be at least $1 million.

The case is being investigated by the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. USCIS, the Diplomatic Security Service, and the Coast Guard Investigative Service provided assistance. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sara Solow and Eileen Castilla Geiger.

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