The operation reportedly involved the creation of shell companies to funnel illicit funds and facilitating the issuance of visas under false pretenses.
DALLAS — The FBI conducted multiple raids across Dallas and Collin counties as part of a federal investigation into a visa fraud and money laundering scheme on Thursday, May 22, sources told WFAA.
Attorney D. Robert Jones, is alleged to have collaborated with a network of individuals to unlawfully obtain U.S. visas for Pakistani nationals through fraudulent means.
The operation reportedly involved the creation of shell companies to funnel illicit funds and facilitating the issuance of visas under false pretenses. The scheme is believed to have been active for several years.
Jones and the other defendants are accused of conspiring to defraud United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, according to the arrest affidavit.
“It was the purpose of the conspiracy for defendants…to wrongfully enrich themselves by receiving payments from visa seekers, submitting false and fraudulent applications and other documents to USCIS as part of the visa seekers’ application to obtain visas and to remain in the United States,” the affidavit alleges.
The affidavit accuses the defendants of using the bank accounts of Jones’ law office and another business, Reliable Ventures, to receive payments from visa seekers and then return part of the money back to them as purported payroll.
The defendants are also accused of making false and fraudulent statements in immigration documents and of money laundering.
According to the affidavit, each defendant agreed a conspirator “would commit at least two acts of racketeering activity in the conduct of the Enterprise’s affairs.”
Naim Sakhia of Sakhia Law Group is an immigration and civil attorney and President of the Pakistan Society of North Texas. He is not connected to this case but that hasn’t stopped some of the fallout reaching him.
“Multiples of dozens [of victims]…our phones have been ringing non-stop,” Naim told WFAA that the calls are from likely victims of this fraud, people who may have been promised citizenship.
“Some apples are rotten and that’s what creates a problem,” Naim said. “The community has been wronged by some members of the same community and that is absolutely terrible,” he said, reminding people that the accused are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
WFAA has reached out to both the FBI and to the defendants but has not heard back as of Friday evening.
Sources told WFAA that federal agents, in coordination with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), conducted searches at various locations tied to the alleged conspiracy. During these operations, Jones and two other individuals were arrested and have since made initial appearances in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
The Department of Justice has yet to release an official statement detailing the full scope of the charges. Further developments are anticipated as the investigation progresses.