A MRS. IS JUST A MS. IN CASABLANCA VISA SCHEME

[JODO 2]

http://www.nypost.com/seven/04302007/news/...fanie_cohen.htm

A MRS. IS JUST A MS. IN CASABLANCA VISA SCHEME

By Stephanie Cohen

April 30, 2007 -- This wasn't the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

A Casablanca visa preparer allegedly forced winners of his country's green-card lottery into sham marriages with his clients, who wanted to secure residency in the United States.

Said Akourir was nabbed in Brooklyn this month. Prosecutors say the employee of a visa-application center in Casablanca grabbed one lottery winner who wanted help filling out his visa application and told him to "do as instructed and not ask questions, or else there would be consequences."

The man was told that if he didn't cooperate, Akourir's consulate contacts would ensure his application failed, then was told that a "spouse" would be listed on his application.

Just before his consulate interview, the victim met his "wife" and was coached on how to answer questions about their union, court papers say.

The U.S. Embassy in Morocco holds a yearly lottery. The 3,000 winners' backgrounds are screened, and 2,000 are granted green cards, along with their spouses and children.

Five of Akourir's co-conspirators were convicted in Brooklyn federal court last year.

Alleged ringleader Abdellatif Nouira, who ran the visa-application center in Casablanca, was convicted of forcing at least seven lottery winners into marrying his relatives or others. Mustapha Hamdi, an employee of the U.S. Consulate, denied the applications of lottery winners who refused to play along.

Edited May 11, 2007 by JODO

[maggieNomar 0]

AS if we don't have enough problems with Casa already!!

[Ban Hammer 13,364]

very interesting. us consulate there is crooked. does that qualify as a news flash?

[brnidokiegurl 0]

[maggieNomar 0]

Not to me. My cousin's husband's visa was denied, and she later found out it was actually stolen in a ring that was found out about 1 1/2 years ago. (hence the denail...the visa was no longer available to him!) His file took over a year to turn up in the USA....nope not surprised one bit. I think I'm more surprised that our SO's actually got their visas, now that I think about it.

[Caladan 19]

Damn. This isn't going to make it easier on anyone trying to convince someone their relationship is real, but since most of the conspirators were arrested and convicted last year, it probably won't introduce any NEW delays.