TOGO: CONSULAR FRAUD SUMMARY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 LOME 000163

PARIS FOR BOB KANEDA
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM CASC TO

SUBJECT: TOGO: CONSULAR FRAUD SUMMARY


1. SUMMARY: The following is an update of Togo's Consular Fraud
Summary for the period of October 2008 to March 2009. END SUMMARY.


2. COUNTRY CONDITIONS: Foreign countries continue to show interest
in helping Togo emerge from its prolonged economic crisis. Massive
flooding in July and August 2008 caused considerable damage to
Togo's infrastructure including the destruction of several key
bridges and roads. Combined with a rise in food prices, this had a
negative impact on Togo's economy. Currently, over 60% of the
population lives below the poverty line.


3. High Cost of Living: Following the universal decrease in crude
oil prices, the Government of Togo (GOT) reduced retail gasoline
prices by 13% on March 19. However, this is still higher than prices
in neighboring countries. The GOT declared an increase of the
Guaranteed Minimum Wage of 13,757 francs per month (about USD 26) to
28,000 francs (about USD 56),but it is not clear when this will be
effective. There are no plans to control the price of basic
commodities.


4. Presidential Election: Presidential elections are due to be held
in early 2010, although no exact date has yet been announced. The
2005 elections were marred by considerable violence and the fear of
this occurring again may provide the impetus for more Togolese to
seek immigration. Currently, the GOT and political parties are
discussing how to update the electoral code.


5. Natural Disaster Damages: There remains significant damage to
Togo's infrastructure as a result of last years' heavy flooding.
Although the international donor community has provided funding for
road construction and other general sanitation projects, the
perception by the population is that little has been done. This
year's rainy season began in April and there will undoubtedly be
more flooding and damage.


6. NIV FRAUD: Over the last six months, NIV fraud investigations
represented 28% of FPU's total investigation workload. Most
applicants intend to study or conduct some form of business in the
U.S. However, post is seeing more and more K-1 visa applications.
This is significant for FPU, as the detection of fraud perpetrated
by K-1 visa applicants in Togo is difficult to prove. These
applicants do not have a long history of a relationship to
substantiate and field investigations reveal little new information
because the petitioner and beneficiary have never lived together.


7. Bank Document Fraud: The number of fraudulent bank documents
presented decreased in the past six months. We assume that it is
because of the past arrests of those presenting the documents. Four
applicants were arrested for presenting fraudulent bank account
statements in this time period. They submitted forged documents
printed with the letterhead of a new local bank in Togo.
Fortunately, the managers of this bank were very eager to press
charges against the fraudsters and helped authorities prosecute the
criminals. The criminal prosecution is still underway and the
individuals are currently incarcerated.


8. High School Diplomas with International Schools: Post has
received a number of international high school diplomas whose
holders say they intend to pursue higher education in the United
States. In particular, Post received many applications from one
school that has a history of accepting students who have dropped out
of the Togolese public education system. The Fraud Prevention Unit
discussed the matter with the National Committee for Certification
and Equivalence of Diplomas. The Office confirmed that the school
does not meet the equivalency of the International Baccalaureate
diploma nor the Togolese Baccalaureate. The school's director also
told consular staff that they have not been accredited by GOT (for
almost 20 years),though the school has now received temporary
accreditation.


9. Pastors and Conferences: Post has seen a rise in the number of
pastors presenting odd invitation letters for conferences in the
U.S. In general these letters have many typos and have very basic
grammatical errors. One such group of letters were for different
pastors to attend different conferences on different dates, but used
the same letterhead.


10. G visa Fraud: A woman pretended to be a secretary and applied
for a G1 visa. She submitted a genuine letter from the Congolese
mission in New York, a genuine contract written by the mission, and
a fake work attestation forged in Lome by her sister who is the
manager of a well-known security company in Togo. Post determined
the applicant was ineligible for the G1 visa under 6(C) after an
Advisory Opinion from CA.


11. IV FRAUD (Non-DV): Most IV cases seen at post are CR/IR and V92
follow-to-join applications. During the past six months, 28% of FPUs
workload was IV investigation requests. This is a significant rise
from 8% in the last semester.


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12. Previous DV Marriage Fraud vs. Current IV Genuine Marriage: In
about 90% of all IV cases, petitioners were DV winners who left with
a wife 5 or 6 years ago, divorced upon entry in the US, then
returned to Togo to marry another woman. In most cases, the first
marriage was contracted solely for immigration purposes and was not
detected during interviews because post did not have a Fraud
Prevention Unit at that time. Post then based its decisions on the
presentation of a valid marriage certificate. In one specific case,
the husband divorced upon entering the US and ordered that his
subsequent marriage be officiated by proxy in Togo. During a
relationship interview, the wife confessed that her husband was not
there and a family member forged his signature on the official
marriage certificate. The case was sent back to NVC for revocation.
In total there were 23 revocations during this period.


13. DIVERSITY VISA FRAUD: Diversity Visa investigations represented
44% of FPU workload over the last six months, with a variety of
fraud types. In the course of this semester, 50% of FPU overall
verifications were related to high school diplomas, most of which
are submitted by DV applicants. Officers refer all such diplomas to
the Fraud Prevention Unit for systematic verifications. There is no
major fraud concern at the moment, probably because all applicants
know their diplomas will be verified. However, Togolese officials
are very slow in responding to post's requests for verifications.
Some DV applicants attempt to qualify on the basis of education by
bringing technical diplomas or degrees earned abroad in a different
education system, for which consular staff cannot determine the
equivalency in the Togolese system. Post systematically refers such
applicants to the National Committee for Certification and
Equivalence of Diplomas. No diploma has been confirmed fake during
this period.


14. Employment Verifications: Post continues to use O'Net Online
classifications to determine whether an applicants' expertise meets
the right job zone. However, very few employment verifications
occurred this semester as the majority of applicants hold valid high
school diplomas.


15. Relationship Fraud: There was a substantial decrease in the
number of married DV applicants. Most applicants are single and
qualified on the basis of education.


16. ACS AND PASSPORT FRAUD: Post has not experienced any ACS fraud
this semester. A total of five passports were declared lost/stolen
(four "Lost" and one "Stolen"). This information was entered into
the ACS application and replacement passports were issued.


17. ADOPTION FRAUD: After a one year suspension, the GOT resumed
adoptions with detailed regulations. A National Committee for
Adoptions (NCA) was officially established in accordance with the
requirements of the Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoptions. The
Consular staff met with the President of the NCA and the information
is currently being updated for CA and the website.


18. DNA TESTING: DNA testing continues to be recommended in IV and
V92 follow-to-join cases when a child is involved, and when the
beneficiary has limited knowledge of the petitioner. The percentage
of negative results decreased significantly this semester from 11%
to 5%. In total 77 DNA tests were recommended over the last six
months and only 4 results came back negative.


19. ASYLUM AND OTHER DHS BENEFITS FRAUD: Since the beginning of the
current fiscal year, there have been fewer asylum related
investigations. Post verified few political party cards and is
currently verifying civil documents. In one case the birth
certificate was confirmed fraudulent by the vital statistics bureau.
The marriage certificate and ID card are still pending verification.
Already, FPU discovered that the handwriting is the same on both the
birth certificate and the marriage certificate. The birth
certificate was supposedly issued in 1967 and the marriage
certificate was issued in 1991. However, the freshness of the ink on
both documents shows that they were likely forged at the same time.
The investigation is pending. Also during the last 6 months, post
completed an evaluation survey for DHS.



20. ALIEN SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING, ORGANIZED CRIME, TERRORIST
TRAVEL: GOT law enforcement authorities continue working closely
with CA and RSO on visa cases requiring in-depth field
investigations. Currently there are no significant cases to report.



21. DS CRIMINAL FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS: The RSO continues to work
closely with CA and GOT law enforcement authorities on fraud
investigations. Post was able to coordinate the arrest of 4 bank
document fraud perpetrators. The fraudsters are currently deferred
to prison, awaiting judgment.


22. HOST COUNTRY PASSPORT, IDENTITY DOCUMENTS AND CIVIL
REGISTRY: Document fraud continues to be rampant at Post, and we

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frequently encounter irregularities in the issuance of civil
documents, especially at the Vital Statistics Bureaus. Often
documents are not valid because the law and procedures are not
followed by civil servants. Many Togolese citizens lack information
about how and where to get the right information. In addition, the
belief that one always needs an intermediary to help drives
unsuspecting people into fraud rings. Over the last six months, post
encountered a number of documents signed by the wrong people, legal
documents naively altered by civil servants to make corrections, and
civil servants allowing marriage by proxy, which is prohibited by
the law.


23. COOPERATION WITH HOST GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES: Post continues to
work closely with the host Government on issues pertaining to visa
fraud. Due to the many irregularities encountered with vital
statistics bureaus, post will be organizing an information sharing
meeting with mayors, archives and office managers, immigration
officers, airline staff and other missions, to prevent fraud. We
hope to share the information on the importance of fighting fraud
and strategizing together for a common purpose.


24. AREAS OF PARTICULAR CONCERN: Post is developing strategies to
determine the validity of marriages or fiance relationships without
having to go on lengthy site visits.


25. STAFFING AND TRAINING: During this reporting period, the
management of the Consular Office changed with the October/November
arrival of a new Consul, Anthony W. Alexander, and Vice-Consul,
Marie M. Blanchard who also serves part time as Fraud Prevention
Manager. The Consul will depart post in November 2009 and be
replaced by Mary E. Earl. The senior FSN, who had been on extended
medical leave, resumed work on January 20, 2009. During this period,
however, Post lost a senior FSN and the Consular OMS was promoted to
fill the vacancy. Since January, the Consular section has been in
the process of hiring a new OMS. A candidate has been selected and
will commence employment on June 8 at which time the section will be
staffed with two Officers and four FSNs. In addition, the section
will be fully staffed once the newly hired EFM's clearances are
completed. The experience of the last six months highlighted the
importance of cross-training for the Fraud Investigator so that she
will be able to stand in for any position when there is a need and
to better understand visa processing, which in turn helps fraud
detection. The section hosted the visit of the Regional Consular
Officer from March 9 - 12. In addition, the section was involved in
the visit of a multi-agency team that was looking at Togo's judicial
system, money laundering, and narcotic trafficking, all issues of
importance to the Consular Section.

THORBURN