The Trump administration will revoke US citizenship from 17 people: this is the second wave of denaturalizations in a month.

The Donald Trump administration intends to revoke the citizenship of 17 naturalized Americans. This decision comes about a month after authorities announced plans to take similar measures against 12 more people who received U.S. citizenship, writes TimeBy the way, then without naturalization there was a native of Uzbekistan left.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on June 8 that the 17 individuals were charged with "serious offenses, including sexual assault of minors, wire fraud, bank fraud, and unlicensed wholesale drug trafficking." The group includes individuals from Cuba, Haiti, Colombia, Mexico, and Jamaica, among other countries.

The department's official announcement emphasizes that, in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, a naturalized American's citizenship may be revoked and his or her certificate of naturalization may be cancelled if it is determined that the citizenship was obtained unlawfully or through concealment of material facts or knowing misrepresentation.

On the subject: 100-200 denaturalizations per month: Immigration Service receives citizenship revocation plan

"When foreign nationals with criminal records abuse the naturalization process and violate the law, there are consequences," said Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanch. "Becoming a U.S. citizen is a privilege, and under President Trump's strong leadership, the Justice Department has a zero-tolerance policy for abuse of this process."

An internal DOJ memo published last year indicated that the agency plans to prioritize denaturalization proceedings against certain categories of individuals. Specifically, these include those who "may pose a threat to national security" and those who have committed serious crimes and failed to disclose them during the naturalization process.

In January, Donald Trump announced that his administration was considering revoking the citizenship of some naturalized Americans. This raised concerns among human rights organizations and immigration law experts. Last month, the Justice Department announced it had filed denaturalization lawsuits against 12 people accused of "serious crimes, including providing material support to a terrorist organization, committing war crimes, and sexually assaulting minors."

Historically, such cases have been rare. Experts note that the law sets a high threshold for revoking the citizenship of naturalized individuals. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, grounds for such a decision may include intentional misrepresentation or concealment of material facts during the citizenship application and subsequent review.

The Justice Department alleges that all 17 individuals targeted in the new lawsuits made false or misleading statements during the naturalization process. Furthermore, the agency believes they failed to meet the "good moral character" requirement required for U.S. citizenship.

The practice of denaturalization was actively used during Trump's first term. According to the National Immigration Forum, an average of 42 such cases were filed annually—significantly higher than the previous period from 199 to 2017, when the average was 11 cases per year.

Trump, who campaigned on a mass deportation agenda during the 2024 election, has authorized tougher immigration enforcement measures in his second term. This includes the operations in Minneapolis, where federal agents shot and killed two people earlier this year.

Who is going to be deprived of citizenship?

Leydis Delmas Garcia (54 years old, Cuba)

Convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, she and her co-conspirators operated 30 physical therapy clinics in Florida that billed Blue Cross Blue Shield nearly $37 million for services that were either never provided or were not medically necessary.

Jean Claude Alfred (68 years old, Haiti)

He began repeatedly sexually assaulting his underage daughter a month before filing his naturalization application and continued throughout the citizenship process. He completely concealed the crimes when filing documents and under oath. He was convicted of attempted sexual assault of a child in a domestic relationship and other sexual offenses against a minor.

Andrea Marroquin (44 years old, Colombia)

The daughter of a major Colombian drug trafficker who inherited his wealth, she obtained a green card by concealing her bigamous marriage. From 2003 to 2011, she was involved in bank and wire fraud, as well as drug money laundering through fictitious real estate transactions in Miami. She naturalized in 2009, completely concealing her criminal activities.

Maria Lourdes Montoya (63 years old, Mexico)

She posed as the wife of a deceased US citizen, Gilberto Montoya, although she was actually married to a Mexican, Ernesto Orozco-Viramontes, who assumed the deceased's identity. She knew about the deception and used it to obtain first a residence permit and then citizenship.

Tahir Lekaj (43 years old, Yugoslavia)

In January 2003 (before naturalization), he raped a 10-year-old child. When applying for citizenship in 2004, he swore in writing that he had committed no crimes. He was convicted in 2022 in Connecticut for two counts of sexual assault of a child under 15.

Talman Harris (49 years old, Jamaica)

Over an eight-year period, including the period during which his application for naturalization was pending (2012–2014), he participated in a conspiracy to manipulate the prices and volumes of publicly traded companies. The scheme resulted in investors investing more than $54 million in artificially manipulated shares and losing approximately $39 million.

Armando Mendoza (39 years old, Mexico)

Beginning in 2009 (even before naturalization), he received child pornography—sexually explicit images of minors. Upon naturalization in 2011, he lied and claimed not to have committed any crimes. He was convicted in 201 for receiving such materials.

Neeraj Sharma (50 years old, India)

As the owner and director of Magnavision LLC, he filed 11 fraudulent H-1B visa petitions. The documents contained false statements about the beneficiaries' employment at a major financial institution and forged letters with forged signatures from executives. When applying for naturalization in 2017, he lied about crimes, false statements, and document forgeries. He was convicted of visa fraud.

Federico Michel Fermin (54 years old, Dominican Republic)

From 2004 to 2005, he participated in a conspiracy to wholesale prescription drugs worth over $1,7 million without a license. He counterfeited and altered the packaging of the drugs to make them appear legitimate. He was convicted in 2011. He lied about his crimes when naturalizing.

Abdikadir Ali Kadiye (54 years old, Somalia)

He attempted to enter the United States under two different identities. First, as Liban M. Degel (stating he was married and childless), but after being denied, he reapplied under his real name. He later admitted to using both identities.

Victor Sun Shing Kwok (50 years old, China)

In 1994, he attempted to enter the country under a false name (Xing Chen Guo), but was denied entry and ordered deported. He later entered the country through marriage to a US citizen, concealing his previous denial and deportation order and failing to leave the country as instructed.

Louise Hankporti (64 years old, Congo)

In 1995, she was denied immigration benefits, after which she changed her identity, submitted false documents, and naturalized in 2010 under her new identity. Fingerprints confirmed a match with her previous identity.

Fernando Cristanacho (69 years old, Colombia)

As a Catholic priest, he used his position in the church to sexually abuse and rape an underage parishioner aged 11–13, as well as other victims. He completely concealed these serious crimes upon naturalization. He was convicted of coercion and seduction of a minor.

Ronnie Price (40 years old, Trinidad and Tobago)

Before naturalization, he had sexual intercourse with a girl under 16. Upon receiving citizenship, he concealed and denied this crime.

Roger George Gurdon (55, Jamaica)

Before naturalization, he participated in a conspiracy to steal and resell medical supplies from military hospitals, as well as a conspiracy to distribute at least 100 kg of marijuana. He lied about his crimes during his naturalization process. He was convicted in 2013.

Jeromell Obehera Arcilla (39 years old, Philippines)

For over a year (before and during his naturalization), he raped his cousin's 15-year-old daughter, with whom he lived in the same house. He completely concealed this from immigration authorities. He was convicted of sexual crimes against a minor.

Milagros Marileysis Acosta Torres (40 years old, Cuba)

She participated in a casino fraud conspiracy in Florida. Along with her husband and accomplices, she engaged in fraudulent credit voucher schemes involving millions of dollars. She laundered the proceeds of her crimes. Upon naturalization, she lied about her involvement in these crimes.

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The Department of Homeland Security plans to target immigration lawyers handling asylum cases.

Green card issuance has halved under Trump, leaving legal immigrants increasingly without status.

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