The Justice Department has filed lawsuits to revoke citizenship from 40 naturalized Americans who it says lied their way through the naturalization process, marking what officials are calling the largest denaturalization effort in modern history.
The targets come from China, Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan, Venezuela, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Mexico. The charges against them include acting as an agent of the Chinese government, committing voluntary manslaughter, sexual offenses against minors, and various flavors of fraud. So basically, a reunion nobody wanted an invitation to.
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the action Monday. “From an individual convicted of espionage to others convicted of sexual offenses against minors, these defendants concealed critical facts from the U.S. government and represent serious criminal offenders,” Blanche said. Hard to argue with that list.
One of the cases involves 60-year-old Cuban-born Javier Marrero-Pando of Georgia. According to the Justice Department, in May 2020 he forced a man with special needs to perform sexual acts against his will. Then in October 2020, he allegedly lied under oath that he had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested. That lie got him naturalized. He later pleaded guilty to aggravated sodomy in June 2022 and received a life sentence, with all but 15 years suspended.
To understand how the government can undo a citizenship, Trump denaturalization lawsuit details federal law allows courts to revoke naturalized citizenship if it was obtained illegally, through concealment of material facts, or through willful misrepresentation. Citizenship can also be stripped if someone joins the Communist Party, a terrorist group, or another subversive organization within five years of naturalizing. Good rules to have, turns out.
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division did not mince words. “Every single one of these individuals lied their way into U.S. citizenship,” Shumate said. “This administration will continue to pursue the largest denaturalization effort in department history to restore trust and integrity in U.S. citizenship. Our message is clear: the United States will not tolerate deception in the naturalization process.
To put the scale in perspective, under previous administrations federal authorities averaged about 15 denaturalization cases per year, according to a Justice Department official who spoke to NBC News. This administration already identified 384 foreign-born Americans for potential denaturalization back in April, the New York Times previously reported. Going from 15 a year to hundreds of targets is not a subtle policy shift.
The lawsuits are now working through the courts. Every case requires a judge to sign off before any citizenship is actually revoked, so this is far from over. But the message from the Trump Justice Department is pretty clear: citizenship is not a prize you get to keep after you lied to get it. Share your thoughts in the comments or on social media, because this one’s worth talking about.
