Overview

• Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV imposed a nine-year prison term and three years of supervised release on Jean Morose Viliena, with deportation proceedings to follow after his sentence
• A federal jury convicted Viliena in March 2025 on three counts of visa fraud for falsely denying he ordered or assisted in extrajudicial killings and political violence
• From 2006 to 2010, Viliena led the Korega militia as mayor of Les Irois, directing attacks that killed a witness’s younger brother and brutally shut down a community radio station
• Viliena secured a Green Card in 2008 by answering “no” on his DS-230 form about participation in killings and lived in the United States for over a decade while raising a U.S.-born child
• Investigation and prosecution efforts by the Justice Department and Homeland Security Investigations underscore U.S. commitment to prosecuting human rights violators who lie to gain residency