- IPO has strong and committed partnerships with law enforcement agencies and financial regulators and in addition to our own inquiries, we support their civil and criminal investigations.
- An example of this is seen in the recent sentencing of two individuals who misused foreign investor funds and defrauded USCIS.
- A federal jury convicted Jennifer Yang and her business partner, Daniel Wu, of visa fraud, mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to commit all the above in connection with a scheme to fraudulently obtain immigration benefits through the government’s EB-5 visa program.
- In another case out of New Orleans, the federal court has set January 26 as the sentencing date for two regional center principals who were entrusted with promoting and sponsoring job-creating capital investment. Their multi-count conviction for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and six counts of wire fraud represents a breach of trust against the investors and USCIS. It may also undermine future investors’ confidence in the EB-5 program.
- If you suspect or would like to report an instance of fraud, please visit uscis.gov/report-fraud. You can click on the EB-5 fraud link and this will take you to information about reporting fraud in the EB-5 program.
- It bears repeating that IPO and the EB-5 stakeholder community share common goals. Maintaining program integrity is mutually beneficial and ensures program longevity.
REGIONAL CENTERS
- I’d now like to discuss USCIS’s authority to continue to administer the regional center program. This program was recently extended until December 11, 2020.
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