Four Sentenced in Large-Scale Marriage Fraud Scheme

A group of four individuals, all Philippine nationals, were sentenced for orchestrating a marriage fraud operation that facilitated over 600 sham marriages to help migrants obtain green cards.

Marcialito Biol Benitez, the operation's mastermind, was sentenced to 22 months in prison for running a marriage fraud agency out of Los Angeles.
The scam involved staging fake weddings and submitting fraudulent immigration documents, costing clients between $20,000 and $35,000.
Authorities discovered hundreds of sham marriages and fraudulent document submissions between October 2016 and March 2022.
The operation also exploited the Violence Against Women Act to obtain green cards for clients with uncooperative fake spouses.
Sentences for the co-conspirators ranged from supervised release to 14 months in prison, reflecting their varying roles in the scheme.