The Trump administration is set to announce a major escalation in its immigration crackdown, moving to revoke the citizenship of 17 naturalised US citizens accused of immigration fraud and serious crimes, including sexual offences and financial misconduct.According to CBS News, the US Justice Department describes the move as the largest-ever use of US denaturalisation powers.Denaturalisation allows the US government to strip citizenship from naturalised Americans if it is proven that they obtained it through fraud or concealment, such as hiding criminal activity during the application process. However, the process is rare, complex, and requires the government to persuade federal judges in civil or criminal court.Justice Department said that between 1990 and 2017, the department filed an average of just 11 cases per year seeking to revoke citizenship. They added that the current campaign marks a huge expansion of that approach, with priorities expanded in 2025 to include more categories of naturalised citizens.Last month, officials brought a dozen similar cases, which at the time was considered the largest effort in years. The 17 individuals targeted in the latest round include people convicted or accused of a range of offences. These include violent and sexual crimes against children, fraud-related offences, and immigration-related deception.Among those named in federal filings are a Haitian immigrant accused of sexually abusing his daughter; a former Catholic priest born in Colombia accused of child sex abuse; a man from the former Yugoslavia convicted of sexually abusing a child under 15; a Filipino-born man who pleaded guilty to a child sex crime; and an immigrant from Mexico convicted of receiving sexually explicit images of minors.Others include an Indian immigrant accused of filing fraudulent H-1B visa petitions; a Jamaican-born man convicted of wire fraud; a Cuban-born woman accused of defrauding a tribal casino; the daughter of a Colombian drug trafficker accused of money laundering; and several individuals accused of using false identities to obtain citizenship.Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the department would take a strict stance on such cases.”Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters,” Blanche said.Those facing denaturalisation are allowed to challenge the government’s case in court. If citizenship is stripped, individuals revert to their previous immigration status, usually lawful permanent residency, and may then face deportation and loss of full rights as US citizens.
