- The Justice Department filed five Florida denaturalization lawsuits between August thirty-first and September twenty-eighth, twenty twenty-six.
- The cases are part of forty nationwide lawsuits filed from August twenty-first through October second.
- Citizenship remains in place unless a federal court rules against a defendant; each can contest the claims.
The Trump administration is asking federal courts to revoke the citizenship of five naturalized Floridians in civil denaturalization lawsuits. The Justice Department filed the Florida cases from August 31 through September 28, 2026.
Those complaints fall within a larger batch of 40 cases nationwide. The department filed that group between August 21 and October 2, its largest single-period filing to date.
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The allegations vary across the five cases, ranging from concealed criminal conduct to the use of multiple identities. Each complaint challenges how a person obtained citizenship.
A lawsuit alone does not cancel citizenship. The defendants can contest the government’s claims in federal court.
DOJ’s Florida cases center on alleged concealment, fraud and false identities
In Hialeah, the department is pursuing Yusmary Shirley Duran Mejia, 47, who is originally from Colombia. DOJ alleges she hid criminal conduct and made false statements during naturalization. She entered the United States in 2007, became a citizen in 2018 and was later convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Jose Ramiro Montiel Carrasco’s case was filed in the Middle District of Florida on September 14. DOJ alleges he sexually abused a minor and committed incest before naturalizing. The complaint concerns conduct alleged to have occurred before he became a citizen.
The government also alleges that Syed Mashood Ul Haque, 66, of South Florida, used multiple identities to avoid immigration enforcement and secure immigration benefits. He is originally from Pakistan.
Arnouse Merlien, 48, of West Palm Beach, is originally from Haiti. DOJ alleges she took part in a fraudulent federal tax-refund scheme before naturalizing in 2016, then concealed that conduct during the citizenship process.
Ping Li, a Florida resident originally from China, was sentenced to four years in prison in November 2024. Li had been convicted of conspiring to act as an unregistered agent of the Chinese government.
Federal courts must decide whether citizenship was unlawfully obtained
The Immigration and Nationality Act allows the government to seek denaturalization if citizenship was illegally procured, or if the person obtained it by hiding a material fact or willfully misrepresenting information. A federal district court generally decides a civil case; USCIS does not revoke citizenship on its own.
The government ordinarily must prove its allegations with clear, unequivocal, and convincing evidence. A criminal conviction entered after naturalization does not by itself undo citizenship. Prosecutors generally must connect the alleged conduct to the person’s acquisition of citizenship.
If the government wins, a court may revoke naturalization and cancel the certificate of naturalization. The person could return to the immigration status held before naturalizing and may face removal proceedings, depending on the facts and applicable statutory bars.
These complaints remain pending. A filing is not a final revocation, and each defendant has the opportunity to challenge the government’s case.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.
