DHS Sweep in Minneapolis-St. Paul Finds 50% of Immigrants Had Committed Immigration Fraud

Nearly half of all immigrants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Twin Cities were found to have committed some form of immigration fraud during a recent sweep by authorities with the Department of Homeland Security, officials revealed Tuesday.

“Officers encountered blatant marriage fraud, visa overstay, people claiming to work as businesses that can’t be found, forged documents, abuse of the H1B visa system, abuse of the F1 visa, and many other discrepancies,” US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) director Joseph B. Edlow told reporters Tuesday.

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USCIS visited 1,000 homes across Minneapolis and St. Paul in the last two weeks and found “nearly 50%” of inhabitants were engaged in some form of immigration fraud.

“Our officers found indications of fraud, non-compliance or public safety and national security concerns,” Edlow said. {snip}

The operation – dubbed Twin Shield, and carried out with the help of ICE – began on Sept. 13 and concluded this week, with Edlow calling it a “success” that could soon be repeated in cities across the country.

“This is the first of many,” Edlow said. “Any city should be prepared to be the site for an operation of this magnitude.”

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