A Chicago resident has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for his role in an immigration fraud scheme. Zhao Tai Cui, 60, admitted to charging F-1 visa holders a fee in exchange for falsely verifying their employment at his company, which existed only to facilitate the fraudulent activity. The scheme operated from 2013 to 2019 and involved Cui advertising these services online and incorporating a business in Illinois that acted as a sham employer.
According to prosecutors, Cui falsely claimed that more than 250 foreign nationals on student visas were employed by his company so they could improperly extend their stay in the United States. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to conspiracy to commit visa fraud.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman handed down the sentence on Friday, ordering Cui to serve two years in prison and pay a personal money judgment of $652,963.
The announcement was made by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI.
“Cui’s scheme was expansive and involved multiple levels of deception,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin Walgamuth argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “This type of crime erodes the public’s faith in the immigration system.”
