NEWS / Federal operation in MN uncovers sham marriage certificates, fake death certificates

Federal officials with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted “Operation Twin Shields” in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area of the State of Minnesota. The operation uncovered immigration fraud, often facilitated by sham marriage certificates and fake death certificates.

The operation also uncovered other forged documents, abuse of F-1 and H-1B visas, and visa overstays. 4 people were arrested and another 42 were subpoenaed to appear in immigration court.

In one reported case, a man paid $100 for a fake death certificate from Kenya to prove that he was no longer married.

“In reality, his wife is alive, living here in Minneapolis, and is the mother of five of his children," USCIS Director Joseph Edlow was quoted by Fox 9 KMSP as stating. "And incidentally, he has another wife living in Sweden with whom he has an additional three children.”

The federal agencies also investigated marriages they suspected of being fraudulent, such as those concluded between a US citizen and a non-citizen for the express purpose of obtaining immigration benefits for the latter, often with the US citizen receiving a monetary payment for such “service”.

"At the end of the day, this is what the government should be doing," Edlow stated. "We have a responsibility to keep this system legitimate. And when you see what has been uncovered by these diligent officers over the past two weeks, less than a two-week period, that's only the tip of the iceberg to what we're actually dealing with when it comes to immigration fraud. That ultimately is, in my opinion, the same thing as a threat to our national security, a threat to public safety, and something that we've got to take seriously."

If you require assistance with the retrieval of vital records, including marriage and death certificates, as well as getting them apostilled or authenticated for use abroad, do not hesitate to contact us via e-mail at info@apostille.us or by phone at (212) 233-7061. You can also place an order on our website.