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Snellville Man Arrested for Fraudulently Obtaining U.S. Citizenship
Mezemr Abebe Belayneh, a 65-year-old man from Snellville, Georgia, has been arraigned on charges related to his alleged lies to obtain U.S. citizenship. According to the indictment, Belayneh concealed his involvement in the late 1970s Red Terror period in Ethiopia, where he served as a civilian interrogator at a makeshift prison.
The indictment alleges that Belayneh unlawfully procured U.S. citizenship by concealing his involvement in the Red Terror when he falsely claimed that he had not persecuted anyone because of their political opinions and had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested.
“The laws of the United States are designed to provide refuge for the victims of human rights violations and to exclude those who commit them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The defendant’s alleged lies through his immigration and naturalization process subverted this system. We commend our law enforcement partners at the Department of Homeland Security and the dedicated team at the U.S. Attorney’s Office who work tirelessly to assure that individuals such as the defendant do not have a safe haven in our communities.”
“Human rights violators have no home in the United States,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid. “No matter how much time has passed, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will find and prosecute individuals who committed atrocities in their home countries and covered them up to gain entry to the United States.”
Mezemr Abebe Belayneh, 65, of Snellville, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 26, 2021, and is charged with two counts of unlawful procurement of naturalization. A conviction would also result in automatic revocation of Belayneh’s U.S. citizenship.
The case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and coordination in the case was provided by the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC). Established in 2009, the HRVWCC furthers the government’s efforts to identify, locate, and prosecute human rights abusers in the United States, including those who are known or suspected to have participated in persecution, war crimes, genocide, torture, extrajudicial killings, female genital mutilation, and the use or recruitment of child soldiers.
Members of the public who have information about former human rights violators in the United States are urged to contact U.S. law enforcement through the HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE (1-866-347-2423) or its online tip form at www.ice.gov/tips.
Mandatory facts: Defendant/respondent: Mezemr Abebe Belayneh, Exact criminal charges: two counts of unlawful procurement of naturalization, City and state: Snellville, Georgia, Exact date: May 26, 2021, Sentence or outcome: currently charged, Dollar amounts: not applicable.
Key Facts
- State: Georgia
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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