USCIS Moves To Strip Citizenship From Several Caribbean Nationals

News Americas, WASHINGTON, D.C., June 23, 2026: The Trump administration’s USCIS has filed denaturalization actions against several Caribbean nationals as part of a broader campaign to strip naturalized US citizens of their citizenship – with Cuban, Haitian, Jamaican, Dominican Republic, and Trinidadian nationals among those targeted in the latest wave of cases.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services, in partnership with the Department of Justice, filed the actions in various US district courts against individuals accused of concealing serious criminal offenses during their naturalization proceedings – including sexual abuse of a minor, healthcare fraud, securities fraud, drug distribution, and money laundering.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a naturalized US citizen’s citizenship may be revoked if the naturalization was illegally obtained through concealment of a material fact or willful misrepresentation. “American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly,” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in the announcement. “If you come here, break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit that privilege. We will continue to use every lawful avenue to denaturalize and remove aliens.”

The Caribbean Nationals Targeted

Cuba – Leidys Delmas Garcia, 54

Leidys Delmas Garcia, a native of Cuba who naturalized as a US citizen, was convicted of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. According to federal prosecutors, Garcia and her co-conspirators established and operated 30 physical therapy clinics in Florida that fraudulently billed insurance provider Blue Cross Blue Shield approximately $36.7 million for physical therapy services that were either not medically necessary or never provided.

Haiti – Jean Claude Alfred, 68

The United States filed a denaturalization action against Jean Claude Alfred, a native of Haiti who naturalized as a US citizen in 1994. According to federal prosecutors, beginning in September 1993 – approximately one month before filing his naturalization application – Alfred repeatedly sexually abused his minor daughter and continued that conduct during the pendency of his naturalization proceedings. Alfred represented in his naturalization application and under oath that he had not committed any crime for which he had not been arrested – concealing his ongoing criminal conduct. A Florida jury convicted Alfred in 1996 of attempted sexual battery upon a child and lewd, lascivious, and indecent assault upon a child under 16.

Jamaica – Talman Harris, 49

Talman Harris, a native of Jamaica, allegedly conspired over an eight-year period – including during his 2012 to 2014 naturalization proceedings – to manipulate the price and volume of shares of stock in publicly traded companies, causing more than $54 million to be invested in artificially controlled shares and an ultimate loss to investors of approximately $39 million. A jury found Harris guilty in 2016 of wire fraud and conspiring to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, with the fraudulent conduct occurring during the period in which Harris was required to demonstrate good moral character to naturalize.

Dominican Republic – Federico Michel Fermin, 54

Federico Michel Fermin, a native of the Dominican Republic, allegedly conspired from September 2004 through August 2005 to distribute more than $1.7 million in prescription drugs wholesale without a license – altering drug packaging to make the drugs appear to have been purchased from licensed distributors. A jury convicted Fermin in 2011 of conspiracy to distribute prescription drugs wholesale without a license. He was sentenced to 48 months in prison.

Trinidad and Tobago – Ronnie Price, 40

Before his naturalization in 2016, Ronnie Price – a native of Trinidad and Tobago – had sexual intercourse with a female under 16, eventually pleading guilty to statutory rape. During his naturalization proceedings, Price claimed he had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested, falsely testified to the same, and concealed facts that would have uncovered his criminal activity.

Jamaica – Rodger George Gurdon, 55

Before naturalizing in 2011, Rodger George Gurdon, a native of Jamaica, allegedly engaged in a conspiracy to steal and resell medical products from military hospitals operated by the Department of Defense – and in a separate conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least 100 kilograms of marijuana. In 2013, after he naturalized, Gurdon pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal pre-retail medical products, interstate receipt of stolen property, and conspiring to distribute marijuana.

Cuba – Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres, 40

Before naturalizing, Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres was allegedly part of a larger conspiracy to defraud a tribal casino in Florida. Her husband and others allegedly stole millions of dollars from the casino by creating false credit vouchers. Acosta Torres subsequently engaged in financial transactions involving the criminal proceeds to disguise their fraudulent origin and circumvent federal and state transaction reporting requirements.

The Broader Context

The denaturalization actions against Caribbean nationals are part of a sweeping Trump administration campaign to revoke citizenship from naturalized Americans accused of concealing criminal conduct during their immigration proceedings. As NewsAmericasNow.com has previously reported, the administration has directed DHS officials to refer upward of 200 denaturalization cases per month to federal prosecutors – a dramatic acceleration from the roughly 130 cases filed in the entire period from 2017 to July 2025.

The cases filed this week were prosecuted by the Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Litigation, with assistance from USCIS, ICE, and US Attorneys’ Offices across multiple federal districts including the Southern District of Florida – home to one of the largest Caribbean diaspora communities in the United States.

For Caribbean Americans who have naturalized – or are in the process of naturalizing – legal experts continue to urge full transparency and complete disclosure of all criminal history during naturalization proceedings. Any concealment of criminal conduct, however minor it may seem, can serve as grounds for future denaturalization action under the Immigration and Nationality Act.