The Department of Justice wants to strip a dozen Americans of their citizenship, including a former United States ambassador and National Security Council official, as it moves forward with denaturalization, according to a new report.
According to a report by The Hill, the DOJ announced on Friday that it is seeking to "denaturalize" 12 U.S. citizens between the ages of 26 and 75. One of them is former U.S. Ambassador to Bolivia Victor Manuel Rocha, The Hill reported.
The DOJ is alleging that the 12 people hid serious offenses by lying during the naturalization process, according to The Hill. The DOJ said they lied about providing material support to terrorists, war crimes, and sexual abuse of a minor, The Hill reported.
“The Trump administration is taking action to correct these egregious violations of our immigration system,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in The Hill article. “Those who intentionally concealed their criminal histories or misrepresented themselves during the naturalization process will face the fullest extent of the law.”
Rocha is a Colombian native, and since 2024, he's been serving a 15-year federal prison sentence for spying on behalf of the Cuban government, according to the DOJ.
The DOJ is also trying to revoke the citizenship of five people from Africa, three from Asia, and two from South America, The Hill reported.
According to The Hill, denaturalization cases "have been historically rare. Research shows that the U.S. government opened an average of 11 denaturalization cases per year between 1990 and 2017."
However, Trump has openly called for a "massive" denaturalization campaign, and his administration has been gearing up to follow through.