From Russia, With Love….and No VISA

Mike Cutler

Recently, an investigation was conducted by the special agents of ICE and the State Department into a massive VISA fraud scam. The scam enabled aliens to enter our nation through ports of entry, claiming to be students, and then simply go about their business in the United States although they were not attending school. The reason for which they had been admitted into our country was not the true reason for their decision to come to the United States; in fact, their business was prostitution.

Behzad “Ben” Zaman, 50, a naturalized citizen from Iran, was arrested by federal customs agents in Los Angeles on charges that he used his English language schools as a front to get student VISAs for Russian prostitutes and other ineligible foreigners. A grand jury indicted Zaman on 14 counts of fraud and misuse of VISAs, conspiracy and money laundering, according to a statement from federal officials.  The charges carry a maximum penalty of 210 years in prison. Zaman operated the Concord English Language Center and another school, the International College for English Studies, authorities said.  He was arrested at Concord.

The aliens, identified as being prostitutes, and the students who were registered to attend the school was estimated to be one thousand. The article noted that the school lacked the physical capability to hold that many students.

I know nothing about Mr. Zaman but the fact that he was a naturalized citizen causes me to wonder at his immigration status and whether he, himself, committed immigration fraud in order to acquire resident alien (immigrant) status and then United States citizenship.

Further, it is important to remember that Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism. This raises the disturbing question whether Mr. Zaman has any sort of relationship with the government of Iran, and if he used his school and his ability to file for student VISAs as a means of obtaining VISAs for terrorists or those who support terrorist organizations in the United States. 

It is very important to understand that all terrorists don't necessarily hijack airliners or set off bombs themselves.  Just as not all of our members of the United States Air Force are not pilots and don't even do their work in the cockpits of airplanes, not all terrorists are involved in physical attacks. Many are involved in fund raising, providing "safe houses" providing documents and conducting "mundane" surveillance. 

A VISA should be thought of as a key to the front door of our nation. While some 60% or more of the illegal aliens who are present in the United States because they ran our nation's borders, some 30% to 40% of the illegal aliens in our country today were inspected at a port of entry. After that, in one way or another, they managed to violate the terms of their admission by overstaying their authorized period of admission and taking an unauthorized job, committing a felony, or by failing to attend a school for which they were admitted.

A Lebanese woman, Nada Nadim Prouty was recently convicted of having entered the United States on a student VISA and overstaying it. She then engaged in a marriage fraud where she paid a man to marry her and file an application for her to be granted a green card, signifying that she was a lawful immigrant. She maintained a "low profile" working in a restaurant of her brother-in-law and then became a United States citizen. She parlayed her newly acquired U.S. citizenship and language skills into a job at the FBI as a sworn FBI special agent and then after a few years left the FBI for a job at the CIA. It was ultimately determined that she had used her security clearance inappropriately to access various secure databases to determine the progress the FBI had made in investigating Hezbollah, a terrorist organization. (The premise to accessing such secure databases is the "need to know" which she did not have.)

As the investigation further determined, her brother-in-law is now a fugitive believed hiding in Lebanon. He is wanted for money laundering and for sending millions of dollars to (you guessed it) Hezbollah!

There have been others who have committed immigration fraud in support of espionage and terrorism including a translator at a U.S. military base overseas who was apparently spying on our military's counter-insurgence program for al Qaeda. In fact, all 19 terrorists who attacked our nation on September 11, 2001 were admitted into the United States through ports of entry.

Consider a study prepared by Janice Kephart, former counsel to the 9/11 Commission, who prepared the study for the Center for Immigration Studies on the topic: "Immigration and Terrorism: Moving Beyond the 9/11 Staff Report on Terrorist Travel."

A copy of her study can be found here.

It starts out by stating:

"OH GOD, you who open all doors, please open all doors for me, open all venues for me, open all avenues for me."
-- Mohammed Atta

And here are highlights of more:

Executive Summary
This report covers the immigration histories of 94 terrorists who operated in the United States between the early 1990s and 2004, including six of the September 11th hijackers. Other than the hijackers, almost all of these individuals have been indicted or convicted for their crimes. The report builds on prior work done by 9/11 Commission and the Center for Immigration Studies, providing more information than has been previously been made public.

The findings show widespread terrorist violations of immigration laws. The report highlights the danger of our lax immigration system, not just in terms of who is allowed in, but also how terrorists, once in the country, used weaknesses in the system to remain here. The report makes clear that strict enforcement of immigration law – at American consulates overseas, at ports of entry, and within the United States –- must be an integral part of our efforts to prevent future attacks on U.S. soil.

Among the findings:

·         Of the 94 foreign-born terrorists who operated in the United States, the study found that about two-thirds (59) committed immigration fraud prior to or in conjunction with taking part in terrorist activity.
 

·         Of the 59 terrorists who violated the law, many committed multiple immigration violations – 79 instances in all.
 

·         In 47 instances, immigration benefits sought or acquired prior to 9/11 enabled the terrorists to stay in the United States after 9/11 and continue their terrorist activities. In at least two instances, terrorists were still able to acquire immigration benefits after 9/11.
 

·         Temporary VISAs were a common means of entering; 18 terrorists had student VISAs and another four had applications approved to study in the United States. At least 17 terrorists used a visitor VISA – either tourist (B2) or business (B1).
 

·         There were 11 instances of passport fraud and 10 instances of VISA fraud; in total 34 individuals were charged with making false statements to an immigration official.
 

·         In at least 13 instances, terrorists overstayed their temporary VISAs.

·         In 17 instances, terrorists claimed to lack proper travel documents and applied for asylum, often at a port of entry.
 

·         Fraud was used not only to gain entry into the United States, but also to remain, or "embed," in the country.
 

·         Seven terrorists were indicted for acquiring or using various forms of fake identification, including driver's licenses, birth certificates, Social Security cards, and immigration arrival records.
 

·         Once in the United States, 16 of 23 terrorists became legal permanent residents, often by marrying an American. There were at least nine sham marriages.
 

·         In total, 20 of 21 foreign terrorists became naturalized U.S. citizens.   

On May 11, 2006 I testified at a Congressional hearing that was conducted by the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on International Relations at the behest of then chairman of that subcommittee, Dana Rohrabacher.  

The topic of the hearing was:

"VISA OVERSTAYS:  CAN WE BAR THE TERRORIST DOOR?"

You can read the transcript that hearing here.

The VISA process is a major component of national security. The VISA Waiver Program eliminates the VISA issuing process and enables aliens from some 27 countries to enter our country without first applying for and receiving a VISA for the United States. At present, the government is about to add additional countries to the list of those whose citizens are exempt the VISA requirement in order to enter the United States. The countries to be added are located in Eastern Europe. If those prostitutes had been able to acquire passports from a VISA waiver country, they would not have had to pay Behzad Zaman money for his assistance but simply could have strolled into the United States at a port of entry and then disappeared, hiding in plain sight.     

Furthermore, it is wonderful that Mr. Zaman's nefarious activities were discovered and he is being prosecuted. All involved in the investigation and the prosecution to follow should be commended for a job well done.  However I have a couple of simple questions. Were any of the prostitutes who were identified in the course of this investigation engaged in other activities that furthered the objectives of criminal organizations or terrorist organizations?

Were all of the "bad players" identified or were some of the other "students" involved in prostitution or other crimes? Could it be that some of the more cautious hookers or criminals actually attended classes in order to stay "below the radar" while they pursued their intended courses of action in the United States outside the classroom?

Consider that Immigration fraud is a huge problem at USCIS, the agency that is responsible for adjudicating all applications for immigration benefits for aliens who are in the United States. This includes aliens seeking to change their immigration status, aliens who apply for resident alien (immigrant) status and even (and especially) aliens who seek to naturalize and become United States citizens. 

How many more schools are "out there" accepting huge bribes and/or extorting huge payments, thus making it clear that our national security does have a price tag – the money that these crooked school operators are stuffing into their bank accounts! 

At the same time, USCIS and the Department of State lack an adequate number of special agents to accomplish the critical mission of restoring integrity to the VISA process and the immigration benefits program. The failure to field an adequate number of special agents to conduct fraud investigations such as this one represents a false economy. No less that the security of our nation is on the line and the government must develop the resources to plug this serious gap in our nation's security.

The VISA Waiver Program, as I pointed out previously, also undermines our national security and it is beyond comprehension that this insane program is about to be expanded!

Perhaps We the People should send crayons to the "leaders" in the administration and in Congress along with the information contained in this commentary to help them "connect the dots" before the next terrorist attack.

FamilySecurityMatters.org contributing editor Michael Cutler is a Fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies and a well-respected authority on immigration and border security issues.
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Other Articles by Mike Cutler...
‘Special Interest Illegal Aliens’ Obtaining Licenses in New Mexico
Busted Passport Ring in Thailand Highlights Security Concerns in U.S.
From Russia, With Love….and No VISA
Right Hand, Meet Left: Accountability in Government Contracting Sorely Needed
Blue Collar Workers Hurt by Failure to Curb Illegal Immigration
‘Comprehensive Immigration Reform’ Back from the Dead?
Illegal Alien Advocates Ignore the Real Problem
Ease of Immigration Background Checks a Bad Idea
That Sucking Sound Is Money Leaving the United States
Who is the Right Candidate for Immigration?

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