The indictments also involved a deacon of the Full Gospel Church in Flushing, Liying Lin, 29, who used to train clients in the basic tenets of Christianity to help fool immigration authorities into believing they were victims of religious persecution. The indictment against Lin mentioned that she “trained asylum applicants on what questions about religious belief would be asked during an asylum interview and coached the clients on how to answer.” Applicants, who made cash donations also received certificates proving “the client's attendance at church and/or the client's baptism” against additional fees, the indictment mentions.
The immigration fraud involved Chinese people seeking and being granted asylum on the basis of persecution on the basis of race, religion, or other political and social factors. According to the indictments, special translators went with the applicants to immigration authorities where they provided favorable versions of responses made by clients and even provided false versions where necessary. The immigration fraud operations also involved providing fake birth certificates and letters that falsely stated that the applicants had recently arrived from China.
The ten law firms involved in the immigration fraud and common or overlapping modus operandi include the Law Firm of Freddy Jacobs; the Law Offices of John Wang, Moslemi and Associates; the Law Office of Ken Giles; Gao and Associates; Bandrich and Associates; and the Law Offices of Adedayo Idowu. None of the law firms were charged, but some of their principal attorneys were. Three more law firms were not identified in the indictments.
In a statement, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, “Asylum fraud imposes a tremendous burden on the system ad it also makes it more difficult for those who are legitimately seeking refuge in the country.” Bharara also accused the defendants of “weaving elaborate fictions,” to dupe immigration authorities.
