A United States Air Force Airman who served at Whiteman Air Force Base and his aunt have been arrested by federal officials for their alleged involvement in an immigration fraud scheme.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, John Paule Rivera, 30, is charged with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, making false statements under oath on immigration documents, making false statements to a federal agency, unlawfully procuring citizenship and misuse of citizenship evidence.
Rivera’s aunt, Myra Paule Schulenburg, 46, is charged with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud.
Court documents indicate Schulenburg, a Colorado resident, was born in the Philippines and later became a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Rivera entered the United States on a J1 exchange visitor visa in March 2017. A few months later, Schulenberg submitted a petition to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services claiming to be Rivera’s mother in an effort to get him a green card.
The petition, filed at the USCIS National Benefits Center in Lee’s Summit, included what investigators say is an altered birth certificate, but was approved and Rivera became a lawful permanent resident.
Rivera went on to join the U.S. Air Force, something a federal prosecutor says he wouldn’t have been able to do if his immigration status had not been approved. He went on to serve at Whiteman Air Force Base and applied to become a U.S. citizen without having to wait the normal amount of time required due to his service.
Court documents state Rivera denied giving false information to gain immigration benefits in his application, and became a U.S. citizen Oct. 11, 2022, in Springfield. After becoming naturalized, he used an authentic birth certificate from the Philippines in a petition with USCIS to help his mother become a lawful permanent resident of the United States. The application was flagged, leading to an investigation and the arrests of Schulenberg and Rivera last weekend.
If found guilty, Schulenberg could face up to five years in prison, while Rivera could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison and face the possibility of being denaturalized.
