USCIS Assists in Investigation
HARTFORD, Conn.— Deirdre M. Daly, U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that David Nikolashvili, 52, a citizen of the Republic of Georgia residing in Stamford, pleaded guilty today in Hartford federal court to engaging in an immigration fraud scheme.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Nikolashvili operated an immigration fraud scheme through which he obtained false immigration status from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for approximately 50 to 60 citizens of European countries. The foreign nationals paid Nikolashvili between $12,000 and $16,000 to arrange sham marriages with U.S. citizens in order to obtain immigration benefits. The U.S. citizens were paid to enter into the sham marriages.
Nikolashvili pleaded guilty to one count of making a false swearing in an immigration matter, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on Oct. 27, 2017.
Nikolashvili was arrested on June 21, 2016, and has been released on a $75,000 bond pending sentencing.
This investigation has been conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, USCIS’ Fraud Detection and National Security Unit, and U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security conducted the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas P. Morabito.
For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter (@uscis), Instagram (/uscis), YouTube (/uscis), and Facebook (/uscis).
