HARTFORD, CT – The pursuit of the American Dream turned criminal for five individuals who today admitted to participating in a brazen marriage fraud scheme designed to illegally obtain U.S. immigration benefits. The guilty pleas, entered in Hartford federal court, expose a network of U.S. citizens willing to enter into sham marriages for profit, and non-citizens desperate enough to exploit the system.
United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, John H. Durham, announced the convictions, the culmination of a federal investigation targeting the exploitation of the nation’s immigration laws. The scheme involved U.S. citizens entering into fraudulent marriages with non-citizens, then sponsoring applications for lawful permanent resident status – commonly known as a “green card.” The non-citizens, in turn, were knowingly participating in the deception to achieve legal residency.
The first domino fell on February 4, 2019, with the guilty plea of MARVIN WILLIAMS, 60, of New York, New York. Williams confessed to entering into four fraudulent marriages, personally sponsoring each of the applicants’ fraudulent green card applications. Following close behind, on March 6, 2019, RICKY OWEN, 39, of Bridgeport, admitted to similar conduct, having entered into two fraudulent marriages and sponsoring both applications. KENOL NOEL, 35, also of Bridgeport, pleaded guilty on April 1, 2019, admitting to two fraudulent marriages and sponsoring the subsequent applications.
The scheme wasn’t limited to U.S. citizens acting as the “marrying” party. DWIGHT HENRY, 44, a citizen of Jamaica residing in Queens, New York, entered a guilty plea on April 24, 2019, confessing to a fraudulent marriage with a U.S. citizen and submitting a fraudulent application for LPR/green card status himself. Finally, today, CARL JARRETT, 36, of Bridgeport, sealed the deal, admitting to a fraudulent marriage and sponsoring his spouse’s application.
All five defendants were initially arrested in November 2018 following a federal indictment. Each now faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit marriage/immigration fraud. This isn’t just about broken vows; it’s about a calculated assault on the integrity of the U.S. immigration system and a betrayal of those who follow the legal path to citizenship.
The investigation was spearheaded by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), working in conjunction with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Office of Fraud Detection and National Security. Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry K. Kopel is prosecuting the cases, promising to see justice served for these calculated crimes.
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Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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