- The Department of Justice filed denaturalisation actions against 25 individuals in various US district courts over serious criminal offences
- The complaints, filed between July 20 and August 3, 2026, brought the total number of such cases since January 2025 to 123
- Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said US citizenship must be obtained lawfully and honestly
TUKO.co.ke journalist Japhet Ruto has over eight years of experience in financial, business, and technology reporting, offering insights into Kenyan and global economic trends.
The United States (US) Department of Justice has publicly named 25 foreign-born individuals, including Africans, who have had their citizenship stripped following denaturalization actions filed in various federal district courts across the country.
The individuals face accusations of serious offences, among them attempted first-degree murder, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, and aggravated sexual assault of a child.
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a naturalised US citizen can have their citizenship revoked and their certificate of naturalisation cancelled if it was illegally obtained or secured through the concealment of a material fact or wilful misrepresentation.
The complaints were filed between July 20 and August 3, 2026, as part of what the Justice Department described as a historic enforcement push.
Since January 20, 2025, the department has filed 123 civil denaturalisation complaints, which it said is the highest number in recorded history.
What did the US acting AG say?
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a firm statement defending the move:
The announcement signals an intensified approach by the current administration toward individuals who are found to have misrepresented their backgrounds or criminal histories during the naturalisation process.
Citizenship fraud, particularly involving concealed criminal records, has become a central focus of the Justice Department’s immigration enforcement strategy since early 2025.
Full list of people stripped of US citizenship:
- Zia Murad Bhatti (Pakistan).
- Tatiana Power (Moldova).
- Narinder Singh (India).
- Emigdio Sanchez (Mexico).
- Louisa Fernandez Ordonez (Colombia).
- Jonathan Omorogieva Obasohan (Nigeria).
- Enos Fong Korti (Liberia).
- Yetunde Folake Olaniyi (Nigeria).
- Mohd Wasif (Pakistan).
- Esther Quayle (Ghana).
- Dwyane Robinson (Jamaica).
- Yi Lee (Taiwan).
- Eddie Jones Appah (Ghana).
- Jose Luis Martinez-Zavala (Mexico).
- Vivian Chike Obichere (Nigeria).
- Jose Francisco Cruz (Honduras).
- Francois Nguessi Dame (Cameroon).
- Haitham Mustafa (Jordan).
- Jairo Tellez (Cuba).
- Carlos Ernesto Giron (El Salvador).
- Juan Camilo Montoya (Colombia).
- Cantave Previlon (Haiti).
- Syed Tanweer Ahmad (Sweden).
- Miguel Eduardo Romero (El Salvador).
- Manuel Antonio La Rosa-Lopez (Peru).
Which Kenyan will be deported?
In other news, we shared details about Dennis Nyagesuka, a Kenyan national, who was recently added to the US Department of Homeland Security’s “Worst of the Worst” public deportation database.
His inclusion raises significant concerns within the Kenyan community, highlighting the increasing number of Kenyans facing serious immigration challenges in the US.
The development came amid tighter immigration enforcement. US releases names of Africans, other 25 foreign-born people stripped of citizenship