United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero, along with the Justice Department and Homeland Security Investigations, has announced that Laye Sekou Camara, a 46-year-old resident of Mays Landing, New Jersey, has pleaded guilty to immigration fraud. The plea was entered before United States District Court Judge Chad F. Kenney.
Camara admitted guilt to charges involving the use and possession of a green card obtained through false statements regarding his past activities during Liberia's civil war. Specifically, he was charged with three counts of using and one count of possessing a fraudulently acquired green card.
Court documents reveal that from approximately 1999 to 2003, Camara served as a general in a Liberian rebel group opposing then-President Charles Taylor's government. Known by aliases "K-1" and "Dragon Master," he entered the United States on an immigrant visa and later secured Lawful Permanent Resident status by falsely claiming on immigration forms that he had not participated in extrajudicial killings or violence nor been involved with any paramilitary or guerilla groups.
The indictment states that Camara used the fraudulent green card for various applications: obtaining a Pennsylvania identification card in 2017, acquiring a New Jersey home health care aide license in 2020, and seeking employment at a home health care agency in New Jersey the same year. He was found in possession of this green card when arrested at JFK International Airport in New York in 2022 while attempting to board an international flight.
Sentencing is set for May 19, 2025, where Camara faces up to 40 years imprisonment.
U.S. Attorney Romero stated, “Respecting both human dignity and the rule of law is fundamental to who we are as a nation... The Department of Justice is committed to working with our federal and international partners to deny human rights violators safe haven in this country.”
Edward V. Owens, Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia, remarked on the significance of this case: “The guilty plea by Laye Sekou Camara is another resounding example of coordination and collaboration targeting human rights violators globally... HSI will continue to thoroughly investigate and prosecute such offenses."
The investigation is led by HSI with support from the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service at the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia, Liberia.
Prosecutors on this case include Assistant U.S. Attorneys Linwood C. Wright Jr., Patrick Brown, Kelly M. Harrell, alongside Trial Attorney Chelsea Schinnour from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section.
The public is encouraged to report information about human rights violators residing in the United States through appropriate law enforcement channels including FBI tip lines or online forms.