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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (WFLA) — A federal grand jury has indicted eleven individuals for their alleged involvement in a marriage fraud scheme aimed at circumventing U.S. immigration laws.
The Department of Justice revealed that these individuals orchestrated a plot to recruit American citizens to enter into fraudulent marriages with Chinese nationals. This was done to unlawfully secure residency in the United States.
| Charge | Offense Dates | Name | Maximum Penalties |
| Marriage Fraud Conspiracy | March 2024 – February 2025 | Anny Chen (54, New York)Sha Xie (38, China)Linlin Wang (38, Chine)Jiawei Chen (29, China)Yafeng Deng (23, New York)Hailing Feng (27, New York)Kiah Holly (29, Maryland)Xionghu Fang (41, China)Tao Fan (26, China)Jaden Bullion (24, Florida)Kin Man Cheok (32, China) | 5 years |
| Marriage Fraud | August 31, 2024 | Anny ChenLinlin Wang | 5 years |
| Bribery Conspiracy | November 2024 – February 14, 2025 | Anny ChenHailing FengKin Man Cheok | 5 years |
The fraudulent marriages took place in various locations nationwide, including Jacksonville, New York, Connecticut, and Nevada, according to the DOJ.
To create the appearance of legitimate marriages, the conspirators staged photographs of the couples, which were then used as evidence in immigration proceedings.
As part of the scheme, the American participants were promised a series of payments. An initial cash payment was given for the marriage, a subsequent payment upon securing legal residency, and a final payment following the arranged divorce, the DOJ outlined.
Anny Chen and Anny Wang received additional charges for a sham marriage that occurred in Jacksonville in August 2024.
The indictment also contains charges relating to an alleged conspiracy to bribe a public official.
DOJ said that in Jan. 2025, a source reported to law enforcement that another individual, a Navy reservist named Raymond Zumba, who had already pleaded guilty on charges related to the same scheme, offered to bribe the source and the source’s spouse.
The source’s spouse worked at Naval Air Station (NAS) in Jacksonville in the personnel office that issues Department of Defense identification cards.
The source reported that Zumba asked whether the spouse would be willing to issue real but unauthorized ID cards for under-the-table payments.
Federal agents directed the source to engage in a series of communications with Zumba during which they discussed plans to obtain the unauthorized ID cards in exchange for cash.
According to DOJ, on Feb. 13, Zumba then drove from New York to Jacksonville.
Zumba, along with Anny Chen, Feng, and Cheok, arrived to NAS Jacksonville where the source’s spouse let them into the personnel office after bussiness hours and initiated the process for ID cards.
The next day, Zumba met with the source to receive the ID cards and was arrested.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Naval Criminal Investigation Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.