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Former Doctor Charged with Naturalization Fraud in Ohio
CLEVELAND – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Yousif Abdulraouf Alhallaq, 46, of Canton, with naturalization fraud, for providing false answers on a U.S. citizenship application and during an in-person interview.
Alhallaq, a former medical doctor, was born in Kuwait but was a Jordanian citizen at the time he entered the United States on an H1B visa in 2006. In 2011, he filed an application to become a permanent resident of the United States, which was approved and granted him lawful status.
However, Alhallaq’s actions took a dark turn in 2014, when he poisoned a victim who was pregnant with his child, in an attempt to terminate the pregnancy without her knowledge. He was later indicted in the Stark County Court of Common Pleas and charged with one count of attempted murder and two counts of felonious assault.
Alhallaq pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to four years in prison in September 2021. But before his sentencing, he had mailed a federal application in late 2017 to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. In the application, he submitted ‘no’ answers to questions about his involvement in killing or trying to kill someone, badly hurting or trying to hurt a person on purpose, and committing a crime or offense for which he was not arrested.
Alhallaq continued with the process of applying for U.S. citizenship and was interviewed by an immigration officer in March 2018. Under oath, he verbally confirmed his answers to the questions as ‘no’, which matched those initially submitted by mail. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen during a ceremony in Stark County, Ohio, on May 4, 2018.
The grand jury charges that Alhallaq knowingly committed acts of attempted murder and felonious assault against his unborn child in 2014, but nonetheless proceeded to sign his naturalization application and provide verbal confirmation to an immigration official, which resulted in him being granted U.S. citizenship.
Alhallaq faces a maximum of up to 10 years in prison for naturalization fraud. If convicted, his sentence will be determined by the Court after a review of factors unique to this case, including his prior criminal record, his role in the offense, and the characteristics of the violation.
Key Facts
- State: Ohio
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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