The Department of Homeland Security says it is ramping up prosecutions of asylum fraud under the Trump administration, pointing to a string of recent convictions in Florida and Illinois as evidence that federal agencies are targeting both smugglers and the immigration attorneys who help file fraudulent claims.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told Breitbart News that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is pursuing those who abused the asylum system during what he called the prior administration’s “wide-open borders” era.
“Four long years of wide-open borders under the Biden administration was a disaster for our nation. The men and women of USCIS are working every day to go after and take down asylum fraudsters, ensuring that these criminals face justice for trying to game the system.”
Earlier this year, DHS directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement to pursue asylum fraud cases, including against immigration lawyers accused of filing false claims on behalf of clients in court.
Florida and Illinois Cases
In August 2026, Yuniel Lima-Santos, 31, of Tampa, pleaded guilty to alien smuggling, asylum fraud, and money laundering. Prosecutors say Lima-Santos helped run a smuggling operation that encouraged thousands of Cuban nationals to enter the United States using fraudulent Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) applications and visa waivers. The organization advertised its services on social media and purchased international and domestic flights to move migrants into and through the country.
That case followed the sentencing last month of five Cuban nationals and one American citizen in Florida, convicted as part of an international smuggling ring that prosecutors said combined fraudulent visa applications with millions of dollars in money laundering.
In the Chicago suburbs, Jose Gregorio Sosa Cardona was sentenced in May 2026 to nine years in prison on charges including immigration fraud, possession of child pornography, and tax fraud. Sosa Cardona ran Delta Global Solutions, Inc., a firm that assisted clients with asylum applications, immigrant visas, and green card petitions. Prosecutors said that from 2020 to 2024, Sosa Cardona and two employees knowingly submitted false information to USCIS, including fabricated foreign police reports and bogus political party membership letters meant to bolster clients’ asylum claims.
Other Fraud and Criminal Cases
DHS officials also cited the September indictment of Biqi Huang, 25, and Wentian Du, 35, accused of misrepresenting a marriage to USCIS adjudicators in order to obtain immigration benefits.
Separately, Afghan national Nazira Haji Zada, 47, was deported in September after admitting she supported a plan by her son and son-in-law to carry out a terrorist attack on Election Day in 2024.
Officials said tighter vetting has also helped identify dangerous individuals already in the country, including Edwin Antonio Hernandez, a 27-year-old alleged MS-13 member who authorities say confessed to murdering five people in El Salvador, where he allegedly shot, tortured, stabbed, and dismembered his victims.
“If our asylum system is not secure, our nation is not secure,” Mullin said.
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