New York Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Immigration Fraud Scheme

A New York-based lawyer has pled guilty to charges of partaking in an immigration fraud scheme by trying to illegally quicken asylum statuses.

Kofi Amankwaa, a 70-year-old lawyer from the Bronx, had been charging asylum seekers in the city up to $6,000 in order to cheat the system through a loophole by having them claim they were victims of domestic abuse. Federal prosecutors said he faces over a decade in prison and $16 million in restitution.

Damian Williams, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement that Amankwaa oversaw a massive fraud scheme that undermined America’s immigration system.

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Prosecutors claim that Amankwaa had “charged migrants between $3,000 and $6,000 to file phony petitions claiming they were abused by their children, triggering a regulation that fast-tracked their ability to travel overseas despite lacking legal status — and ultimately making it easier to establish residency,” per the New York Post.

“Under the scam, migrants who claimed they were abused could qualify to legally travel overseas despite not having legal US residency, the feds said,” added the NY Post. “Upon returning, he would claim their ‘advanced parole travel’ status qualified them for legal residency more quickly.”

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