Justice Department Seeks to Denaturalize 17 Individuals for Serious Offenses

The Justice Department has initiated denaturalization actions against 17 individuals, citing serious offenses and failure to disclose unlawful behavior during their naturalization processes. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the Trump administration enforces a zero-tolerance policy regarding the abuse of the naturalization process. CBS News reported that this is the largest effort by the Trump administration to revoke citizenship. Many of the individuals involved have prior convictions for fraud or drug-related charges, with six individuals having been convicted of or pleading guilty to sexual abuse involving children. Denaturalization refers to the process where an individual's citizenship status is reverted to what it was before they became a U.S. citizen. Historically, the U.S. has filed an average of 11 denaturalization cases annually from 1990 to 2017. The Trump administration had previously identified 384 foreign-born Americans for potential denaturalization proceedings. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin emphasized that American citizenship is a privilege that must be earned honestly. The individuals targeted in this announcement come from various countries, including Cuba, Haiti, Colombia, and Mexico, among others. One individual, Neeraj Sharma, is accused of fraudulently signing and filing multiple H-1B visa petitions.