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UN Employee Arrested for Visa Fraud
A United Nations employee has been charged with employment visa fraud in connection with the hiring of a Bangladeshi domestic worker. Hamidur Rashid, an economist working at the UN, was arrested and will be presented in Manhattan federal court today.
According to the allegations, Rashid grossly overworked his domestic worker while paying her well below the wage he reported to the State Department and to the UN. He allegedly obtained the visa for his domestic worker through lies about the wages he intended to pay her, and once she was brought here, he set up a sham bank account to spend for himself the wages he purported to pay her.
Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said, ‘Domestic workers brought to our country from abroad find themselves in a vulnerable position, far from home and facing a huge power imbalance relative to their employers. As alleged, Hamidur Rashid, an employee of the United Nations, took cruel advantage of his position of power.’
The case was investigated by the Diplomatic Security Service’s strong relationship with law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Rashid made false promises to the Bangladeshi national about her salary in order to procure her employment in the United States. In order to obtain a G-5 visa for the worker, Rashid caused false statements about her salary to be transmitted to the State Department in the form of an employment contract.
The employment contract must include the number of hours of work per week and the hourly wage, which must be the greater of the minimum wage under U.S. federal and state law, or the prevailing wage. The employment contract must also state that, after the first 90 days of employment, all wage payments must be made by check or electronic transfer to the domestic worker’s bank account, to which the employer should not have access.
This case highlights the importance of protecting the rights of vulnerable workers, particularly those brought to the United States under employment visas.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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