BLIND COPTIC GIRLS' CHOIR USED FOR ALIEN SMUGGLING

UNCLAS CAIRO 002205

DEPT FOR CA/FPP, CA/EX, CA/OCS, DS/CR/OCI
ALSO FOR G/TIP, INL, DRL, PRM, NEA/RA, NEA/ELA, NEA/PPD

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

POSTS FOR FRAUD PREVENTION UNITS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KFRD KIRF CVIS CMGT KOCI ASEC PHUM SMIG EG
SUBJECT: BLIND COPTIC GIRLS' CHOIR USED FOR ALIEN SMUGGLING

REF: CAIRO 2178


1. (SBU) Summary: The Cairo Fraud Prevention Unit (FPU) has
identified seven individuals who were successfully smuggled to the
United States through their inclusion with a church group of blind
Coptic girl singers. The church group was organized and sponsored by
an Egyptian-American man in the United States and an Egyptian lawyer
in Alexandria. The seven individuals included three Muslims who had
converted to Christianity. End Summary.

Bogus Support Staff
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2. (SBU) Information developed by Egyptian State Security
Investigative Services (SSIS) and the FPU in reftel was analyzed to
uncover church groups that had traveled to the United States. With
the Consolidated Consular Database's (CCD) Text Search function, the
Fraud Prevention Manager (FPM) found one group of 21 individuals
that included ten blind Coptic girl singers and eleven support staff
that traveled to the United States in 2006. Of the eleven support
staff identified as "musicians," "sound engineers" and "decoration
coordinators," three had previously been refused a visa on several
occasions. Checks of the exit/entry records in the Department of
Homeland Security's (DHS) Arrival Departure Information System
(ADIS) and with Egyptian immigration officials confirmed that seven
of the eleven support staff individuals have not left the United
States.


Illegal Immigration Lawyer
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3. (SBU) The A/RSO-I and Fraud Prevention Manager (FPM) interviewed
the ex-wife of one of the above seven individuals who stayed in the
United States. She stated that both she and her husband at the time
had agreed to pay about USD 10,000 each to a lawyer in Alexandria to
be included in a church group traveling to the United States.
Members of their Coptic Orthodox Church community had referred the
couple to this lawyer who had a reputation of successfully smuggling
individuals to the United States. The wife ultimately did not travel
because of a difficult pregnancy, but her husband did arrive in the
United States with the group and claimed asylum. He subsequently
divorced his Egyptian wife and married an American. The A/RSO-I
coordinated with a Diplomatic Security (DS) Special Agent assigned
to the New York Field Office (NYFO) to interview the ex-husband in
the United States who corroborated his ex-wife's story.


The 2006 Tour
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4. (SBU) The blind Coptic girls' choir was organized to tour
different Coptic Orthodox Churches in New Jersey and Virginia.
Included in this group was a Coptic priest, his wife and a Coptic
nun. The Coptic priest and his wife manage a house for blind Coptic
girls and met with the A/RSO-I and the FPM on November 22 to discuss
the 2006 tour. They confirmed that the tour was organized and
sponsored by an Egyptian-American man and his cousin, the lawyer in
Alexandria. In addition, they confirmed that they did not know any
of the support staff besides the three converts from Islam and one
musician. The priest stated that the converts, one man and his
teenage son and daughter, were included in their tour group because
they had converted to Christianity. He stated they would have faced
hardships in Egypt if they remained. Finally, the priest added that
all the other individuals who had stayed in the United States and
claimed asylum did so purely for economic reasons.

Comment
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5. (SBU) The inclusion of mala fide travelers in a tour group is a
fraud scheme that has often been repeated worldwide. The lessons to
be drawn from the cases cited above will serve as a topic for one of
the upcoming discussions that the Consular Section will hold with
all consular officers on fraud indicators and visa adjudications.
Post will heighten its vigilance in examining applications submitted
by members of travel delegations, including those instances where
the sponsoring organization is well and favorably known. Officers
will be reminded that all applicants must demonstrate compelling
ties to their home country and the merits of their individual
application. Economic conditions in Egypt and the hope of real
economic opportunities in the United States remain strong motivating
factors for illegal immigration.

SCOBEY