Kofi Amankwaa, a 70-year-old immigration lawyer, was found guilty of masterminding a massive immigration fraud scheme that took advantage of weaker immigrants and compromised the integrity of the U.S. immigration system.
He was sentenced to 70 months in jail.
Thousands of false immigration applications were filed by Amankwaa and his friends under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) over the seven-year plan, which ran from September 2016 to November 2023.
Amankwaa’s clients were granted advance parole travel cards and subsequently applied for permanent residency by fabricating that they had been abused by their U.S. citizen children.
Kofi Amankwaa’s modus operandi was to charge his clients exorbitant fees, ranging from $3,000 to $6,000, plus administrative fees, for his services.
Unbeknownst to his clients, Amankwaa was using their applications to perpetuate a massive fraud scheme that would ultimately lead to his downfall.
The investigation into Amankwaa’s activities was led by the Newark Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations, with support from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Office of Fraud Detection and National Security.
The probe revealed that Amankwaa’s scheme was not only lucrative but also widespread, with thousands of immigrants affected.
Kofi Amankwaa’s sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla, sends a strong message to immigration attorneys who engage in fraudulent activities.
The sentence also serves as a warning to immigrants who may be vulnerable to such scams.
In addition to his prison sentence, Amankwaa was ordered to forfeit $13,389,000 and pay $16,503,425 in restitution to his victims.
His license to practice law in the State of New York was also revoked.
