Everything Was Fake: Chinese Crime Ring Facilitated 1,000 Sham Marriages Over 10 Years in the U.S.

Arranging Marriage-Based Green Cards in the U.S.

Up to $100,000 Charged Per Individual

11 U.S. Citizens and Others Indicted, 10 Arrested

From Wedding Officiation to Interviews and Even Divorce, All Facilitated

A Chinese fraud ring that arranged over 1,000 sham marriages in the United States over the past ten years to help individuals obtain marriage-based green cards has been uncovered.

Wedding disguise scene photographed on December 17, 2024. Provided by the U.S. Department of Justice.

On August 12 (local time), the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it had indicted 11 individuals and arrested 10 in connection with an organization that assisted Chinese nationals in entering sham marriages with U.S. citizens in exchange for large sums of money from 2016 to July 2026.

Prosecutors believe that the defendants connected Chinese nationals and U.S. citizens from 2016 through last month. The indictment names 10 naturalized American citizens originally from China and 1 permanent resident. They face charges of engaging in a long-running conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, immigration document fraud, and encouraging illegal residence by foreign nationals.

According to investigative authorities, the organization received as much as $100,000 (about 135 million won) per Chinese national wishing to obtain permanent residency. The U.S. citizen who agreed to be the fake spouse was paid up to $30,000 (about 40 million won), and recruiters who brought in citizens reportedly received a fee of up to $37,000 (about 50 million won) per case.

The group matched Chinese clients with U.S. citizens and had them meet each other only immediately before the marriage registration. Afterwards, they staged fake wedding ceremonies in rented studios or banquet halls and took photos to present them as a legitimate married couple.

Even after the wedding, meticulous documentation was prepared to evade detection. According to prosecutors, they manipulated documents such as joint bank accounts, utility bills, tax returns, and life insurance policies to make the relationship appear genuine.

Subsequently, green card applications containing false information were submitted to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The organization even conducted advance training on how to answer questions falsely if an interview was scheduled.

Although based in New York, the organization expanded its network across the United States — including Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida — as well as overseas to places such as Vanuatu and China. Investigations revealed that a driving school office in Brooklyn was used as a base to coordinate wedding ceremonies, immigration applications, and interview preparations.

The organization also actively recruited marriage partners, some of whom were active-duty U.S. military personnel. Prosecutors found that at least 14 active-duty U.S. Army soldiers in Kentucky alone were involved in sham marriages with Chinese nationals between 2023 and 2025.

Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, described this case as "one of the largest marriage fraud schemes in American history." Charges against the defendants will be determined through upcoming trials.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.