DOJ Seeks To Rescind US Citizenship Granted To 10 Individuals

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Monday that it has filed to denaturalize 10 individuals charged or convicted with various crimes, including offenses against minors.

“Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a naturalized U.S. citizen’s citizenship may be revoked, and certificate of naturalization canceled, if the naturalization was illegally procured or procured by concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation,” the DOJ said in a July 20 statement, adding that the Trump administration was continuing its “largest denaturalization effort ever.”

One of the individuals targeted for denaturalization is Rodriguez Perez, 45, of Cuban origin, who was naturalized as an American in 2018. Prior to obtaining citizenship, Perez engaged in Medicare fraud worth more than $886,694 and concealed this conduct during the naturalization process.

Perez pleaded guilty in the case and was convicted of conspiracy to commit healthcare and wire fraud.

Another individual, Urbano Vazquez Ortega, 53, a Mexican naturalized in July 2017, had sexually assaulted children while being employed as a church priest in Washington. The crimes were committed between 2015 and 2017. Ortega was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2019.

A third individual, Omar Cantu-Montalvo, 44, from Mexico, was naturalized in December 2005 after claiming in his application that he had never committed a crime. However, Cantu-Montalvo was later sentenced to 100 months in prison by a court for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, a scheme he joined just a few months before applying for naturalization.

Other individuals have been charged with crimes such as carrying a concealed firearm, sexually abusing a minor, misrepresenting identity to secure citizenship, and wire fraud.

“These 10 criminal aliens—including child sex abusers, a $900,000 Medicare fraudster, and a cocaine trafficker—lied their way into U.S. citizenship,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the statement.

“Each of these individuals lacked the good moral character required by law and procured citizenship through willful misrepresentations and concealment of their crimes. Under President Trump’s leadership, this Department of Justice will continue to aggressively pursue denaturalization to restore integrity to America’s naturalization process.”

In January, the Southern District of Texas court, McAllen Division, issued an order to revoke the citizenship of a naturalized person convicted of a child sex offense.

In March, the DOJ announced it had secured the denaturalization of two individuals—a convicted gun trafficker and a healthcare fraudster.

As of late April, the Trump administration had filed 22 denaturalization cases in its second term, according to the DOJ. During the entire Biden administration, 24 such cases were filed.

A DOJ memo from June 2025 prioritized investigations and enforcement actions advancing denaturalization. The memo directed the department’s Civil Division to aggressively pursue denaturalization cases by evidence, especially those involving national security threats, undisclosed felonies, gang activity, and terrorism.

Sanctity of US Citizenship

In an April 24 post on X, Rep. Grace Meng (D- N.Y.) criticized the Trump administration’s denaturalization efforts.

Naturalized people are American citizens, Meng said. Individuals who undergo the naturalization process are “extensively vetted,” often spending years navigating America’s immigration system, taking exams, and pledging loyalty to the United States, she said.

“The President’s targeting of naturalized U.S. citizens is not only a reckless weaponization of the Department of Justice, it is an attack on core American values,” Meng said.

During a Senate hearing last month, Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) argued that denaturalization is a crucial safeguard to protect the sanctity of U.S. citizenship, according to a June 4 statement from the lawmaker’s office.

“For too long, Washington treated naturalization like paperwork. Check the boxes. Say the words. Get the passport. Collect the welfare check or federal tax credit. Move on. That approach desecrates American citizenship. It insults every immigrant who came here honestly, followed the law, learned our history, embraced our Constitution, and took the oath in good faith,” Schmitt said.

“The Supreme Court has made the rule clear: no alien has the slightest right to naturalization unless every statutory requirement is met. Citizenship obtained by fraud is stolen status. Stolen status should be revoked.”