SAIPAN, CNMI – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that Angel Paras Cruz, Jr., age 82, was sentenced to three years of probation with the condition he serve 12 months in home detention, for Visa Fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1546. The Court also imposed a $15,000 fine, $28,2763.31 in restitution, and a mandatory $300 special assessment fee.From August 2023 to January 2024, Cruz petitioned six workers from the Republic of the Philippines under the CNMI-Only Transitional Worker (CW-1) Visa Program. He provided the applicants, as well as U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), false and misleading information relating to the applicants’ wages, work hours, compensation, and duties to be performed. Instead of adhering to the contracts and information provided on the I-129CW forms, Cruz used fear and intimidation to force the six CW-1 applicants to work above the 40-hour work week, demanding they work nights and weekends without pay, and forced them to live in unsafe and degrading conditions. Cruz also confiscated some of the workers’ passports and personal documents.“The Department of Justice will fight any abuse of the CW-1 program,” stated United States Attorney Anderson. “Employers will be held accountable for exploiting lawful foreign workers. This case demonstrates our continuing commitment to combating fraud in our districts.”“HSI investigates visa fraud and other crimes related to foreign travelers such as forced labor, drug smuggling, and human trafficking,” said CJ Ammons, Acting Special Agent in Charge at Homeland Security Investigations. “Today’s sentencing underscores our commitment to identifying and dismantling groups that exploit U.S. trade, travel, and financial systems, and to ensuring those who violate the law are held accountable.” “Protecting the integrity of U.S. travel documents and the welfare of those who depend on them is central to the Diplomatic Security Service’s mission,” said Stephen F. Zagami, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Honolulu Resident Office. “The sentencing of Angel Cruz sends a strong deterrent message: those who abuse the visa system to exploit vulnerable workers will not be able to hide and will be held accountable. We commend the victims for coming forward and are proud to have played a role in bringing the individual who committed these heinous crimes to justice.” “This case serves as a prime example of the strong relationship USCIS maintains with our law enforcement partners,” said USCIS Spokesman Zach Kahler. “Through ongoing interagency cooperation and coordination, we were able to bring this case to a successful conclusion and hold this bad actor responsible for visa fraud. This outcome underscores our unwavering commitment to strengthening the American immigration system.”This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service, with the assistance of U.S. Homeland Security Investigations – Saipan, DSS – Honolulu Resident Office, and USCIS.Assistant United States Attorney Garth R. Backe, prosecuted this case in the District of the Northern Mariana Islands.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice