The U.S. Department of Justice has charged a Nevada man with naturalization fraud, alleging he lied on his 2018 U.S. citizenship application about past crimes.
The indictment claims Kevin Jesus King denied committing or assisting in any offense for which he was not arrested, despite having committed two rapes before applying for citizenship and another before becoming naturalized.
King checked a box on his application indicating "No" to the question about past crimes, authorities said.
He was eventually naturalized during a ceremony on June 15, 2018, in Reno, but later pleaded guilty to two instances of sexual assault, which occurred in 2017 and 2018.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Nevada stated that U.S. citizenship cannot be obtained through lies, concealment, or fraud and that their office will continue to work with law enforcement to protect the integrity of the naturalization process.
The charges come as the government continues to ramp up efforts to strip foreign-born Americans of citizenship if they allegedly obtained it by fraud or concealed serious crimes during the naturalization process.
Evidence suggests that King's case is part of a larger effort to address naturalization fraud, with the government moving to revoke the citizenship of 17 people who allegedly obtained naturalization through similar means.
Fraudulently obtaining citizenship is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and can result in automatic revocation of citizenship, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
