A Chicago resident has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for his role in an immigration fraud scheme involving false employment verifications for foreign nationals. Zhao Tai Cui, 60, admitted to charging F-1 visa holders a fee in exchange for falsely claiming they were employed by his company, allowing them to improperly extend their stay in the United States.
Cui promoted these fraudulent services online and created a company in Illinois solely to serve as a fictitious employer. The scheme operated from 2013 until 2019 and involved at least 250 F-1 visa holders whom Cui falsely reported as employees of his sham business.
Earlier this year, Cui pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit visa fraud. U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman handed down the sentence on Friday, which also includes a personal money judgment of $652,963.
The sentencing was announced 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 stated in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “This type of crime erodes the public’s faith in the immigration system.”
