11 people charged in US marriage scam for green cards

The US Justice Department has charged nearly a dozen people with participating

in a multimillion-dollar scheme to help hundreds of Chinese nationals

fraudulently get green cards through sham marriages to US citizens.

American citizens were paid as much as 30,000 US dollars

to enter into bogus marriages with immigrants seeking lawful

permanent resident status as part of the scheme orchestrated

from New York, according to court papers.

The defendants charged up to 100,000 US dollars per green card,

bringing in tens of millions of dollars over the course of the

decade-long scheme.

Authorities say they believe the group arranged more than 1,000

sham weddings, describing it as one of the largest marriage fraud

prosecutions in the country's history.

US Attorney General Todd Blanche said

This is one of the largest marriage fraud prosecutions in United States history.

This scheme was not a quick fly-by-night operation, but rather a years-long,

multi-million-dollar cottage industry to criminally assist people who would not,

or legally could not, otherwise become citizens of the United States.

The men and women who facilitated this scheme were all naturalised citizens

originally from China and one green card holder.

The charges come against the backdrop of the Trump administration's

restrictions on both legal and illegal immigration

which have sought to crack down on who is able to enter the country

to become a citizen.

The defendants would help the immigrants through the lawful permanent

status application process as well as staging photos of families at places

like restaurants to make the fake weddings look legitimate.

The 11 defendants include people accused of officiating the sham weddings

and are charged in an indictment filed in New York.