Posted on 01/31/2019 4:36:32 PM PST by Theoria
Three people who operated multimillion-dollar birth-tourism businesses in Southern California were arrested Thursday in the biggest federal criminal probe ever to target the thriving industry, in which pregnant women come to the United States to give birth so their children will become American citizens.
The businesses coached their clients to deceive United States immigration officials and pay indigent rates at hospitals to deliver their babies, even though many of the clients were wealthy, investigators said. Some Chinese couples were charged as much as $100,000 for a birth-tourism package that included housing, nannies and shopping excursions to Gucci.
A tip sheet for customers, entitled “Strategies to Maximize the Chance of Entry,” recommended stating on a visa application that pregnant mothers intended to stay at the “5-star” hotel, “Trump International Waikiki Beach,” to convince immigration officials that they were well-to-do vacationers, not mothers traveling with the intention of giving birth on American soil, investigators said.
Grand jury indictments unsealed Thursday in Federal District Court in Los Angeles brought the total number of people charged in the schemes to 19, including both business operators and clients. But some of those targeted in the indictments were not presently in the United States, investigators said.
The appeal of bearing an American child, long associated with immigrants who enter the country illegally, has spurred a birth-tourism industry that now caters to people from all over the world.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Nick Hanna, United States attorney in Los Angeles, said in a statement. “Some of the wealthy clients of these businesses also showed blatant contempt for the U.S. by ignoring court orders directing them to stay in the country to assist with the investigation, and by skipping out on their unpaid hospital bills.”
Ooh, they arrested 3 people?! Wow.
Wake me when they arrest about 3 million.
New York Times, finally lists names at the next-to-the-last paragraph!
Another reason to end birthright citizenship. Parents (mother, at least) must be in the country legally as immigrants and not tourists in order to claim citizenship.
I hate the Chinese with a passion of a thousand suns
Thanks to the liberal Demoscum the USA are the chumps of the world, and every thief on the planet wants to rob our wealth.
SCOTUS needs to clarify the true intent of the 14th...after Judge Ginsburg retires of course.
ping
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