ticklethewire.com A 26-year-old Chinese woman made it into the FBI academy to train as an agent before authorities busted her for entering into a sham marriage to obtain U.S. citizenship.
Yue Cheng of Williamsburg, Va. pleaded guilty last week in Norfolk, Va., to naturalization fraud and false claims. She faces up to 26 months in prison at her April 19 sentencing.
According to authorities, Cheng entered the U.S. in 1999 to attend college. Two years later, at age 19, she married a 57-year-old California man in Las Vegas to obtain citizenship, according to an FBI affidavit. She then joined the U.S. Navy and was stationed in Norfolk. She collected extra pay because of her marriage. On Sept. 28, 2004, she became a naturalized citizen, authorities said. In March 2007, she applied to the FBI in Norfolk to become a special agent and in September she reported to the FBI Academy for training, the affidavit said. Earlier this year, while in special training at the FBI academy in Quantico, “she admitted to entering into a fraudulent marriage for the purpose of obtaining United States citizenship.”
During an interview with two FBI agents, Cheng told agents that she first suspected there would be a financial obligation to her sham husband, but that she suspected he ultimately “benefitied from the marriage through sexual favors”, the affidavit said. She told agents that “her intent was to create better educational and career opportunities in the United States rather than to cause harm to the United States or help the Chinese government.” Read FBI Affidavit
