A Brooklyn, New York, man is facing a 12-count immigration fraud indictment brought by federal authorities in Vermont who say he filed more than 1,800 bogus applications seeking permanent resident status for people under a provision meant for abuse victims.
Prosecutors claim Arleigh Louison had made up those abuse claims in applications he submitted on behalf of petitioners, and didn’t even tell them he did it.
Louison, 53, was taken into custody Tuesday at his office in Brooklyn. His arraignment on the charges filed in Vermont has not yet been set.
A federal grand jury earlier this month returned the immigrant fraud indictment against Louison, though it wasn’t until Tuesday that it was unsealed and became public. Prosecutors say Louison was arrested today as authorities armed with a warrant raided his office.
A release issued Tuesday afternoon by the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated that Louison ran an immigration fraud scheme involving filing false statements with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
In total, according to the indictment, Louson submitted more than 1,800 fraudulent applications for over 1,000 petitioners in the last four years to the USCIS service center in St. Albans.
Specifically, the indictment alleged, Louson made false statements in connection with Form I-360 petitions seeking changes in status under the Violence Against Women Act.
According to court filings in the case, the Violence Against Women Act allows a person to be eligible to become a permanent resident if they are:
• Spouses and former spouses of abusive U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.
• Children of abusive citizens or lawful permanent residents who file before turning 25.
• An immigrant parent of an abused immigrant child, even if the immigrant parent is not the one being abused.
• Abused parent of a U.S. citizen child when that child is 21 years of age or older.
“In particular,” the indictment stated, “Louison frequently fabricated the petitioner’s abuse claim as well as the U.S. citizenship or legal permanent resident status of the alleged abuser.”
Also, the indictment stated, “Without giving the applicant a chance to review the Form I-360, Louison would have the petitioner sign the Form 1-360 containing false information.”
The indictment stated that the petitioners paid Louison for his services, though it doesn’t say how much money he charged or pocketed in the alleged fraudulent scheme.
The 12-count indictment against Louison relate to 12 specific applications filed by him on behalf of petitioners.
Kraig LaPorte, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Vermont, referred questions about the immigration status of the petitioners who allegedly had false immigration documents submitted on their behalf to the USCIS.
A USCIS official said Tuesday they are researching the matter.
Meredith Parker, a USCIS public affairs officer, wrote in an email Thursday that due to privacy restrictions the federal agency could not provide information on individual cases.
Also, according to Parker, USCIS does not discuss pending litigation.
U.S. Attorney for Vermont Christina Nolan could not be reached Tuesday for comment.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners prioritize prosecution of large-scale, complex fraud in all its forms,” Nolan said in a statement announcing the charges against Louison.
Profit-motivated immigration fraud is a serious offense,” Nolan added, “and we will treat it accordingly.”
Read the story on VTDigger here: Prosecutors in Vermont charge Brooklyn man in immigration fraud scheme.