11 indicted in one of America’s largest marriage fraud prosecutions

The U.S. Justice Department, according to TIME, charged 11 people Wednesday in a decade-long scheme involving over 1,000 sham marriages to secure green cards for mostly Chinese nationals.

Attorney General Todd Blanche called it one of the largest marriage fraud prosecutions in U.S. history. Foreign nationals reportedly paid facilitators up to $100,000, who paired them with U.S. citizens paid around $30,000 each.

Operations spanned several states and countries including China and Vanuatu. Defendants face up to 15 years combined on conspiracy charges tied to marriage and immigration fraud.