The Trump administration announced Monday that it is moving to denaturalize 17 American citizens accused of concealing criminal conduct or making misrepresentations during the naturalization process.
The Department of Justice said the individuals have been convicted of serious offenses, including sex crimes involving minors, health care fraud, bank and wire fraud, drug trafficking, and unlawful distribution of prescription drugs.
Officials described the effort as the largest denaturalization push ever undertaken by the federal government.
American citizenship can be revoked under the Immigration and Nationality Act if the government proves a person obtained naturalization by concealing material facts or willfully misrepresenting information that would have affected eligibility.
“American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a DOJ press release. “If you come here, break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege.”
Mullin said DHS would continue using “every lawful avenue” to denaturalize and remove individuals who abused the immigration system.
The 17 people targeted are originally from countries including Cuba, Haiti, Colombia, Mexico, Yugoslavia, Jamaica, India, the Dominican Republic, Somalia, China, Congo, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Philippines.
According to DOJ, the cases include a Haitian national convicted of sexually abusing his minor daughter, an ordained Roman Catholic priest accused of grooming and sexually abusing a minor, a Jamaican national involved in a stock manipulation scheme tied to more than $54 million in artificial share investments, and a Dominican national accused of conspiring to distribute more than $1.7 million in wholesale prescription drugs without a license.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department would take a hard line against people who obtained citizenship dishonestly.
“Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters,” Blanche said. “Gaining U.S. citizenship is a privilege and under the steadfast leadership of President Trump, this Department of Justice maintains a zero-tolerance policy for the abuse of this process.”
Denaturalization cases are legally complex and often take years to resolve. Historically, the federal government has used the tool sparingly, averaging roughly 11 cases per year between 1990 and 2017.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services field offices have reportedly been instructed to identify and refer between 100 and 200 potential denaturalization cases per month throughout 2026.
The announcement follows a separate May effort by the DOJ to denaturalize 12 individuals accused of offenses including war crimes, sexual abuse of minors, and providing material support for terrorism.
The administration is signaling that naturalized citizenship will remain secure only for those who obtained it lawfully and honestly.
“Anyone thinking they can defraud the naturalization process should think again,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate said. “We will continue to pursue anyone who unlawfully or fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship.”
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