BOISE - Victor Raul Fenesan, 32, and Claudia Luminita Beian, 34, Romanian nationals residing in Boise, Idaho, were sentenced today in federal court for obtaining a United States Visa by fraud and unlawful procurement of citizenship, respectively, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. The defendants were living in Blaine County at the time of the offense conduct. They were charged in separate indictments in September 2012, and pleaded guilty to the charges on Aug. 12, 2013.
U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Fenesan and Beian each to two years’ probation and imposed a $2,000 fine. Judge Lodge also entered an order revoking Beian’s U.S. citizenship. Fenesan did not attempt to obtain U.S. citizenship. Fenesan and Beian will be subject to immigration enforcement action by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
According to plea agreements filed in the cases, Fenesan and Beian admitted to marrying U.S. citizens in 2004 for the sole purpose of obtaining immigration benefits. Neither Fenesan nor Beian resided with their spouses as husband and wife, but rather continued to reside with each other. In April 2005, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) granted Fenesan and Beian lawful permanent resident Visas, which they would not have received had they disclosed the fraudulent nature of their marriages. In February 2010, Beian obtained naturalization as a United States citizen as a result of her fraudulent marriage.
“As this case demonstrates, abusing our immigration system to illegally obtain U.S. citizenship will not be tolerated," said Brad Bench, special agent in charge of HSI Seattle, who oversees Idaho investigations. “These individuals will have a lifetime to contemplate the devastating consequences of manipulating the process, back in their home country and without the life they started to build in the U.S."
The cases were investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
