Operation Knot So Fast cracks down on Florida marriage-fraud rings

Jim Leusner/The Orlando Sentinel
5/8/2008

ORLANDO, Fla. - Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents swept across Central Florida this week, arresting three dozen people who they say were part of several rings that arranged for-pay, sham marriages between South American visitors and U.S. citizens.

The roundup, dubbed Operation Knot So Fast by investigators, flooded the federal courthouse in Orlando with defendants who are accused of orchestrating fraudulent weddings; foreigners accused of paying to get married because they overstayed their visas and wanted spouses so they could continue living and working here; and their American spouses accused of being paid for their roles in the scam.

Neither Roger Handberg, head of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Orlando, nor the agency's spokesman in Tampa, Steve Cole, would discuss the cases Thursday. "We are planning an announcement early (this) afternoon," Cole said.

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