Colombo American Embassy Consular Section Reports 58 Cases of Fraud in 2005
[Full Text of Press Release - U.S. Embassy Colombo]
Colombo, December 1, 2005:
Thousands of Sri Lankans enjoy traveling to the United States to take holidays, visit family members, meet with business partners, continue their education, and experience a culture distinct from their own. In the past eleven months, the U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka interviewed more than 13,000 applicants for immigrant and non-immigrant visas to the United States.
The Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy works hard to offer efficient and courteous service to all visa applicants, while at the same time maintaining a strict adherence to U.S. law. Unfortunately, not all visa applicants are legitimate travelers. Some applicants misrepresent themselves, present false documents, or otherwise attempt to defraud the Consular section in order to obtain a visa. The U.S. Embassy has no tolerance for any type of fraud and relies on state-of-the-art technology, comprehensive investigations and a broad network of international and local contacts to detect and prevent fraud. In the previous year, the U.S. Embassy fraud prevention unit investigated a total of 987 suspicious cases. As a result of these investigations, 58 individuals were arrested by local authorities and charged with attempting to defraud the U.S. Embassy during the course of their visa application. Furthermore, 4 cases were found to have marriage fraud, 12 cases involved employment fraud, 4 cases included student visa applicants, and 6 cases involved violations of Sri Lankan immigration law on the part of the applicant. In 2004, U.S. Embassy investigations resulted in 84 arrests of visa applicants by Sri Lankan anti-fraud law enforcement authorities.
One recent case highlights the effectiveness of U.S. Embassy fraud controls.
Early in 2005, a young man applied twice for a tourist visa with the intention of joining his father, who was illegally living and working in the United States. The man was refused a visa both times. Months later, the same man applied for a visa using a different name, false personal information, altered photos, and a fraudulently-obtained Sri Lankan passport for which he paid a considerable sum of money. The man was attempting to hide his previous applications by traveling under this new, fictitious identity. During the course of the interview, the Consular section again decided he did not qualify for a U.S. visa. However, using cutting-edge facial recognition and finger-scan technology, officers were able to detect the applicant's false identity. The imposter was subsequently arrested and charged with providing false information to the Sri Lankan Immigration Controller, a felony crime punishable by up to five years in prison.
This example illustrates the success of U.S. Embassy fraud prevention measures. The Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy looks forward to continuing to work together with Sri Lankan law enforcement to combat fraud in the future.
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