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Rasmieh Yousef Odeh, Lying to Obtain U.S. Citizenship, Michigan 2016
A 69-year-old Chicago-area resident, Rasmieh Yousef Odeh, has pleaded guilty to obtaining United States citizenship unlawfully. Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel Lemisch announced the guilty plea in a press release.
Odeh, a naturalized United States citizen, was convicted overseas for being a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a designated Terrorist Organization by the United States government. She was also convicted for participating in two terrorist bombings in Jerusalem in 1969, which resulted in the deaths of two individuals and many more wounded.
Odeh obtained a United States immigrant visa in 1994 and has lived in the United States for the last 22 years. In 2004, she obtained United States citizenship. However, she lied about her criminal history, falsely denying that she ever had been arrested, charged with a crime, convicted, or imprisoned.
The plea agreement signed by Odeh and accepted by the court states that she omitted her Israeli arrest, charge, conviction, and imprisonment from her United States naturalization application, despite knowing that she was required to disclose them. Odeh also admitted that she made the false statements intentionally and not as a result of any mistake, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or any other psychological issue or condition.
As a result of her conviction for having obtained naturalization unlawfully, Odeh will be stripped of her United States citizenship when she is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gershwin A. Drain. Sentencing was set for August 17, 2017 at 2pm. Odeh agreed to a judicial order of removal, under which she will be deported to her nation of citizenship, Jordan, and will not be allowed to reenter the United States.
Acting U.S. Attorney Lemisch commended Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, and particularly Special Agent Stephen A. Webber, for the outstanding investigation which led to Odeh’s conviction. The prosecution was conducted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Tukel.
Key Facts
- State: Michigan
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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