In Fall River, Massachusetts, a 43-year-old woman allegedly ran what amounted to a wedding business with a price list. Jennifer Gonzalez, prosecutors say, charged illegal immigrants $38,000 to $40,000 apiece to marry U.S. citizens she had hired, and she kept at it for more than a decade. Six people are now charged, and the U.S. Attorney’s office says the take topped $6 million.
How the business worked
According to court documents, Gonzalez averaged 18 to 20 sham marriages a year. Customers paid her. She in turn paid U.S. citizens, including Jessica Tavares, 31, of Attleboro, to marry them, so the customers could file papers with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Another citizen, Pugh, worked as the operation’s secretary. Authorities say Gonzalez made hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, and Reuters reported that the scheme ran about 12 years.
She also coached her clients, investigators allege. They were told to open joint bank accounts, take out life insurance policies and pose for selfie-style photos as a married couple. She warned that putting together enough paperwork would take three to four months, and she made customers sign “contracts” for her services.
The recordings
Much of the case rests on audio and video recorded during the investigation. In one, Gonzalez takes a $3,000 cash down payment and directs a client to print and sign a disguised “loan” contract. She allegedly explained that the document left out the spouse on purpose, because naming one would be “incriminating.”
Talking to a cooperating witness, she said her goal was “for you to get the American dream.” She also complained that business had grown harder since Donald Trump returned to office in 2025. Massachusetts, she said, was a “sanctuary” where “you get a lot of help as an immigrant.”
Where the money went
Gonzalez allegedly told investigators she put the proceeds into businesses and real estate in the Dominican Republic. U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said she had entered a sham marriage herself and collected Massachusetts SNAP food benefits without reporting any income from the scheme. Court documents say she spent more than $120,000 in those benefits while running the ring.
The defendants face charges of conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, marriage fraud, conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens and harboring illegal aliens. Gonzalez and four others were arrested. A co-defendant named Hill is already serving a state sentence for a firearms offense.
The prosecutor’s message
At a press conference in Boston, Foley, who was appointed by the Trump administration, said Gonzalez had been “operating with impunity under the last administration.” She added that the investigation is continuing and could lead to charges against people who got legal status through the ring.
“My hope is that today the charged defendants and others like them realize that the American dream is not for sale,” Foley said. “It is earned. And when you try to pilfer it for profit, we will hold you accountable.”
The Guardian noted that the case follows one in New York in August, when the Justice Department charged 11 people over a scheme prosecutors said produced about 1,000 sham marriages.
Sources
- Sham marriage
- Six Charged in Large-Scale Marriage Fraud Ring
- US charges six people in alleged Massachusetts marriage fraud ring
Photo: Daderot (CC0)
