The chief executive officer of two Bay Area universities was arrested Thursday, August 2, 2012, following his indictment on charges stemming from a long-term probe spearheaded by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Jerry Wang, 34, was taken into custody at his Santa Clara home the morning of Thursday, August 2, 2012. Wang is the CEO of two Sunnyvale-based institutions, Herguan University and the University of East-West Medicine. Wang is named in a 15-count indictment handed down July 24 charging him with conspiracy to commit visa fraud; use of false documents; aggravated identity theft; and unauthorized access to government computers. Wang, who made his initial appearance in federal court Thursday, August 2, 2012, is scheduled to be formally arraigned Aug. 20.
The prosecution is the result of an 18-month investigation by the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force (DBFTF) overseen by HSI. The DBFTF is a multi-agency task force that coordinates investigations related to fraud schemes involving immigration documents and benefits.
The case indictment unsealed Thursday, August 2, 2012, alleges that, beginning in July 2007 and continuing through at least February 2011, Wang and others conspired to commit visa fraud by submitting falsified documents to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP). In addition to the conspiracy charge, Wang is accused of four counts of visa fraud, seven counts involving false documents, two counts of aggravated identity theft and one count involving unauthorized access to a government computer. If convicted of all the charges, he faces a maximum penalty of up to 85 years in prison.
In light of the allegations uncovered during the ongoing investigation, the two universities face the loss of their authorization to enroll foreign students under SEVP. ICE has issued both schools a Notice of Intent to Withdraw, the first step in revoking the schools' SEVP certification. The schools have 30 days to respond to the notice and request an interview to contest the action. Meanwhile, foreign students who are currently enrolled at these universities may continue to attend classes as long as the schools remain SEVP-certified and the students are able to maintain their lawful immigration status.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hartley M. K. West aided by Rania Ghawi.
A
third man was sentenced to federal prison Wednesday, March 28, after pleading
guilty to a conspiracy that involved making false statements in applications to
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the creation and transfer of
false identification documents, and the altering and transferring of foreign
passports.
The
case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE)
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force
(DBFTF) and the Florida Highway Patrol.
Rajin
A. Latchman, 29, of Winter Garden, Fla.,
was sentenced to 14 months in federal prison. Co-conspirators Ted B. Shirley
and Gaitrie Latchman were previously sentenced after pleading guilty for their
roles in the conspiracy. Shirley was sentenced Jan. 25 to 30 months in federal
prison. Gaitrie Latchman was sentenced Feb. 28 to 28 months in federal prison.
According
to court documents, Gaitrie and Rajin Latchman would, for a fee of between
$2,500 and $3,000, arrange for illegal aliens to obtain a Florida driver license. They were assisted
by Shirley, who was an examiner at the Clermont office of the Florida
Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV). As part of their services,
the Latchmans would provide immigration and identification documents to the
aliens, to present at the DHSMV office. To obtain such documents, the Latchmans
would file applications with USCIS to cause the issuance of Form I-797C notices
of action. The notices of action then served both as an immigration
classification document and as proof of identity.
The
Latchmans also altered I-797Cs and foreign passports. They then coordinated
with Shirley so that their customers would make contact only with him when they
went to the DHSMV office, thereby avoiding any scrutiny of such documents.
During
the period of time that this criminal activity was taking place, Gaitrie
Latchman also applied for naturalization and obtained U.S.
citizenship. Pursuant to statutory requirements, the court revoked her
citizenship and declared her certificate of naturalization to be void.
This
case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sam Armstrong.
