Marriage scammer heading to prison

A Jamaican woman who arranged more than two dozen sham marriages as part of an elaborate scheme to obtain green cards for herself and other non-American citizens is heading to prison in the United States (US).

Between 2011 and 2017, Jodian Stephenson, 37, who resides in Connecticut, conspired with others to arrange a total of 28 bogus marriages, typically charging between US$17,000 and US$20,000 for one non-citizen, said authorities, citing court documents and witness statements.

American citizens were paid between US$2,000 and US$4,000 for their participation in the scheme.

One of the sham marriages was between Stephenson, also known as 'Jodian Gordon', and a US citizen.

She has been sentenced to six months in prison, the US Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut announced in a statement last Thursday.

Stephenson was first arrested on June 22, 2018, and pleaded guilty on August 19, 2019, to one count of conspiracy to commit immigration marriage fraud.

She has been released on US$250,000 bail but must report to prison by October 25 this year.

Eight persons, including American citizens who entered into one or more fraudulent marriages with non-citizens as part of the scheme, have also pleaded guilty to several related offences. Two others are awaiting trial.

Deportation proceedings have been, or are being, commenced against Stephenson and all individuals whose green card applications were found to have been based on the bogus marriages, according to the statement from the US Attorney's Office.

The scheme began to unravel after the Jamaican arranged a sham marriage that helped an undercover federal law-enforcement agent obtain 'lawful permanent residence', or a green card, for a fee of US$20,000.

Among the evidence prosecutors had in their possession were recorded conversations in which Stephenson introduced the undercover agent to a US citizen and advised them about the ways they could “create the appearance that they were validly married and living together as husband and wife”.

For each of the 27 other fraudulent marriages, prosecutors said Stephenson would locate and introduce Americans to their purported spouse then help the 'couple' obtain a marriage licence.

“She also organised the marriage ceremony and celebration, and coached the couple on how to make their marriage appear to be genuine, despite their neither living together nor otherwise intending to remain actually married,” said the statement from the US Attorney's Office.

Stephenson also prepared several immigration documents needed as part of the non-citizen's green card application.

“In some cases, Stephenson or her assistants prepared other false documents for the couple, such as a false lease that portrayed the couple as living together,” the statement continued.

She then had the documents signed and, in many cases, mailed to the US Citizenship and Immigration Service authorities.