Agents served search warrants at an office located at the Hilton, 225 West Valley Boulevard in San Gabriel, a home in a gated community in the 700 block of Carriage House Drive in Arcadia, another residence on Larry Beard Drive in South El Monte, as well as a 2015 Porsche registered to one of the suspects.
U.S. authorities said the key suspects helped wealthy Chinese obtain residency visas in the United States in exchange for bogus investments.
At least three of the investors who obtained green cards through the program were fugitives wanted by the Chinese government, accused of bribery and other crimes.
Federal agents raided on Wednesday the Los Angeles-area facilities of a business suspected to be involved in a US$ 50 million visa fraud operation that helped rich Chinese nationals, some fugitives, obtain green cards.
Lawyer Victoria Chan and her father, Tat Chan, allegedly raised more than $50 million from more than 100 Chinese nationals who wanted these visas, according to a detailed affidavit for a search warrant filed in federal court in the Central District of California unsealed Wednesday. Federal agents in California yesterday raided two homes and a business allegedly connected to a US$50 million (RM221 million) visa fraud scheme that benefited up to 100 Chinese nationals.
“However, rather than legitimately investing the funds into American businesses, CIIF either refunded the funds to the EB-5 investors while their EB- 5 petitions were pending, in direct violation of the EB-5 program, or stole millions of dollars to use for personal expenditures, including buying million- dollar homes”, according to the affidavit. Federal authorities said while they believed most of the people who participated in the scheme knew it was illegitimate, they said it was possible that some thought it was legitimate and were duped. A spokeswoman said the agencies weren’t seeking to make arrests immediately. Phone and email messages were left for Victoria Chan.
The investigation dates back at least four years, when Homeland Security investigators looked into one of the listed project sites.
The probe in California comes as USA lawmakers weigh proposed changes to the visa program that has grown popular among wealthy foreigners seeking to move to the us but faces widespread criticism amid allegations of fraud and misuse.
The EB-5 program was created in 1990 to help stimulate the U.S. economy through foreign investment.