Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09SOFIA229
2009-05-15 10:30:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Sofia
Cable title:  

Semi-annual Fraud Summary Sofia; October, 2008 - March,

Tags:  CVIS KFRD CPAS CMGT ASEC BU 
pdf how-to read a cable
Tim W Hayes 05/18/2009 11:32:43 AM From DB/Inbox: Tim W Hayes

Cable 
Text: 
 
 
UNCLAS SOFIA 00229
CXsofia:
 ACTION: CONS
 INFO: POLEC RSO AMB DOJ DCM

DISSEMINATION: CONX
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: CONS: DPERRONE
DRAFTED: CONS: CTURPIN/IKOLIS
CLEARED: NONE

VZCZCSFI476
PP RUEHC RUEHBW RUEHSQ RUEHBM RUEHVB RUEHTH
RUEHTI RUEHVI RUEHRO RUEHMD
DE RUEHSF #0229/01 1351030
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 151030Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY SOFIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5992
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0039
RUEHSQ/AMEMBASSY SKOPJE 2037
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 0215
RUEHVB/AMEMBASSY ZAGREB 0992
RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS 0001
RUEHTI/AMEMBASSY TIRANA 1161
RUEHVI/AMEMBASSY VIENNA 1214
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 0528
RUEHMD/AMEMBASSY MADRID 0653
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SOFIA 000229 

DEPT FOR CA/FPP; DEPT ALSO PASS TO KCC; POSTS FOR
FRAUD PREVENTION MANAGERS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS KFRD CPAS CMGT ASEC BU
SUBJECT: Semi-annual Fraud Summary Sofia; October, 2008 - March,
2009

REF: 08 Sofia 0645

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 SOFIA 000229

DEPT FOR CA/FPP; DEPT ALSO PASS TO KCC; POSTS FOR
FRAUD PREVENTION MANAGERS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: CVIS KFRD CPAS CMGT ASEC BU
SUBJECT: Semi-annual Fraud Summary Sofia; October, 2008 - March,
2009

REF: 08 Sofia 0645


1. SUMMARY: Though overstay rates for Bulgarians may still be
declining overall, low wages here continue to fuel problems in this
area. Our latest H2B validation study, for instance, indicated a 33
percent overstay rate. On the other hand, our most recent B1/B2
validation study found the overstay rate down to around 3 percent.
We continue to implement and refine our "No Thugs to America"
policy, refusing applicants we believe to be connected with
Bulgarian organized crime. FPU prepared a new in-house report
regarding the evolution of organized crime structures and
enterprises here. IV encountered some step-child fraud, along with
more irrefutable evidence of false Roma asylum claims in
follow-to-join cases. We saw no ACS/passport fraud during the
reporting period. End summary.


2. COUNTRY CONDITIONS: Bulgaria's geographic position at the
intersection of Europe and Asia makes it a transit point for illegal
migration and alien smuggling. Relatively trying economic
conditions in the country mean that Bulgaria is also a source
country for illegal migrants to the U.S. With an average monthly
wage of EUR 269 for last quarter of 2008 and prognosis of EUR 307
for the first quarter of 2009, Bulgaria has one of the lowest income
levels in the EU. The unemployment rate for the last quarter of
2008 averaged 6.42 percent, down by 1.3 percent from the last
quarter of 2007.

The unemployment rate for the first quarter of 2009 averaged 6.7
percent, up by 0.3 percent from the last quarter of 2008. In March
2009, according to the NSI business inquiries, the industrial
confidence indicator fell by 3.2 percentage points compared to the
February level. The decrease was due to the lower demand and the
low expectations of managers for production activity in industry
over the next 3 months. In February 2009 the harmonized index of
consumer prices increased by 5.4 percent overall compared to the
same month of 2008, due to an increase in prices registered in all
observed groups with the exception of transport and communications.

For the period January, 2009 - March, 2009 the inflation rate in
Bulgaria was 6 percent, which is higher than it was for the same
period last year. The government expects the inflation rate for the

end of 2009 to be 4.2 percent. This would edge Bulgaria closer to
meeting requirements for Euro adoption by 2010.
Unemployment stood at 5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.
Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, the unemployment
rate dropped by 1.1 percentage point and the number of the
unemployed persons decreased by 37,600. These figures do not take
into account underemployment and overall low wages, however.

According to the Bulgarian National Statistical Institute, the 7,578
Bulgarians who visited the U.S. in the reporting period represented
a 0.8 percent increase from the same period last year. The number
of Bulgarians visiting the United Kingdom (where they need no visa
for tourism) decreased 1 percent. The number of Bulgarians visiting
other countries in the EU rose 24 percent.

Local press and reports that more than 50,000 Bulgarian immigrants
returned to Bulgaria because of the increasing unemployment rate
abroad during the first quarter of 2009. Perhaps another fifth of
Bulgarian economic migrants may return home in the near future
because of the global crisis. According to a recent local NGO
survey out-migration by Bulgarians has probably decreased by around
50 percent over the last 12-18 months. This year only 8 percent of
Bulgarians aged 20-35 who were polled intended to leave the country.
Last year's figure was 16 percent.

OC - EU: According to the European Commission interim report on
Bulgaria's progress in implementing judicial reforms, Bulgaria has
not demonstrated convincing results in key areas such as in the
fight against high-level corruption and organized crime. "The
commission's analysis of a sample of high-profile cases [organized
crime] registered shows that only one case has been finalized since
2000 and half of the cases are still at the investigation stage."
The European Commission also recommends that Sofia strengthen
"actions to fight corruption within local government and vulnerable
sectors such as healthcare and education." Cases of alleged
high-level corruption and organized crime, when pursued at all, have
continued to be subjected to frequent referrals and long delays on
procedural grounds. An investigation of OLAF uncovered many
irregularities related to a large number of tender offers which were
used to support SAPARD applications in Bulgaria. Due to allegations
of fraud and misuse, the European Commission froze more than USD 750
million in pre-accession funding to Bulgaria in 2008.


3. NIV FRAUD: fraud in Sofia remains fairly common, although FPU
still does not see signs that visa fixers are becoming particularly
advanced. Most fraud is relatively unsophisticated and easily
identified, including phony bank statements, invitation and/or
employment letters and so on.

B Visas - During this reporting period, problems consisted mainly of
petty document fraud and applicants attempting to conceal previous
overstays/illegal activities in the U.S. FPU completed a B1/B2
validation study for applicants who received visas from August to
December 2007; we predicted a 10 percent overstay rate which
generated a sample of 8 percent of the 4906 approved applicants for
B1, B2 and B1/B2 visas. Using ADIS we verified returns for the
people included in the sample. The overall overstay rate was 4
percent, up 0.75 percent from our last such study on January - July
2007 B visa recipients. Unemployed applicants from poorer regions
were over-represented among overstays, but otherwise we found no
telling indicators. Age, gender or prior visa issuance did not
prove to be relevant factors in fraud cases. Individual B1/B2
investigations revealed occasional applicant connections with
organized crime, including illegal weapons possession, involvement
in arms or narcotics trafficking and association with known OC
figures. For the reporting period FPU assisted in seventeen B1/B2
cases where applicants were suspected to have connections with OC.
In all cases the visas were denied.

C1/D Visas - Bulgaria has a long coastline on the Black Sea which
includes the two major ports of Varna and Burgas. The shipping
industry is a major employer in that region, so we have a steady
stream of sailors applying for C1/D visas. FPU maintains close
contacts with all notable local shipping companies for monitoring
and verification, but C1/D fraud can still be a problem. To combat
it we reserve a certain morning of the week for C1/D applicants to
apply separately from other NIV applicants, which allows us to
better monitor flow and spot outliers more easily. In addition FPU
routinely monitors and investigates press reports and advertising,
as well as internet chat rooms that indicate attempted abuse of this
category by both facilitators and past or potential applicants. The
most common profile of the dubious C1/D applicant is a relatively
young man with limited experience as a seaman, a new passport, a
limited travel history or no travel history at all and not from
Varna or Burgas. Typically he intends to work on a private yacht, a
job he says he found on the internet.

H Visas - FPU completed a validation study of applicants who
received H2B visas for the calendar year 2007. During that period
consular officers approved 982 applications for H2B visas, while
refusing applicants at a rate of 30 percent. Using the same methods
as described in the B visa study, FPU sampled 10 per cent of the
approved applicants. We found an overall overstay rate of 33
percent, down slightly from our last H2B study. This confirmed
overstay rate, especially when considered in light of a high refusal
rate, is consistent with the facts on the ground: many Bulgarians
have limited opportunities to make good salaries in their own
country and continue to seek legal and illegal opportunities to work
overseas. For the reporting period we had 149 H2B applicants, a 43
percent decrease compared with the same period in 2007 - 2008.

J-1 Visas - We noted in reftel our interest in seeing if a couple of
new factors connected with the J1 Summer Work and Travel program
would have an impact on overstay rates for this visa category. In
2007, for the first time, final year university students were
eligible to participate in SWT. Thus our refusal rate for these
final year students and, consequently, our overall SWT refusal rate
was significantly lower that year than in the past. Our SWT volume
in the first quarter of 2009 dropped significantly, by nearly 50
percent. FPU predicted an overstay rate of 8 percent for the
purposes of conducting a SWT validation study, which generated a
sample of 314 approved applicants. Upon accounting for 100 percent
of these SWT participants, we were pleasantly surprised to find an
overstay rate of only 6 percent, a 2 percent drop from the year
before. More final year students applied and were issued in 2008
than in 2007, so we conducted a separate study for all last year
students who were issued visas. The overstay rate was 11 percent
for this group.

For the first quarter of 2009 SWT season we had just over 1,500 J1
visa applicants, with only 3 cases of fraud detected. All
applicants presenting fake documents were interviewed by FPU. In
most of the cases alterations were made by the applicants. We found
no evidence for the possible existence of an organized production of
false student documents.

4. IV FRAUD: We have a steady trend of Chicago step-child fraud
cases, in which American Citizens who have recently married
Bulgarians (fraudulently) petition for the stepchildren of their new
spouses. In most of these cases we come to the conclusion that the
marriage is for the purpose of the adoption only, and that the
natural parents are still in reality "together," though not both
living in the U.S. Presumably the other natural parent plans on
trying to get to the U.S. subsequently by some other means. For the
reporting period we had one marriage fraud case, one fraudulent case
of third preference employment based visa.


5. DV FRAUD: The number of DV applications at post has decreased in
recent years as available numbers have dropped, and DV fraud is not
common here. We had just one counterfeit high-school diploma, and
had no DV marriage fraud cases for this reporting period.


6. ACS AND PASSPORT FRAUD: We have traditionally experienced
extremely low levels of ACS and passport fraud in Sofia, and FPU had
just one fraudulent attempt to secure an American passport for a
baby.


7. ADOPTION FRAUD: FPU has seen no recent cases of adoption fraud.
Bulgaria began implementing new laws governing adoptions by
foreigners in 2004, in order to bring the country into compliance
with the Hague Convention, and as a result the number of such
adoptions dropped precipitously. In 2008 only 5 adoptions by U.S.
citizens took place in Bulgaria, a drop of more than 90 percent from
only 5 years earlier.


8. ASYLUM AND OTHER DHS BENEFITS FRAUD: Asylum claims by Bulgarian
citizens based on alleged Roma ethnicity may have decreased somewhat
in recent years, but we still see discouraged asylum seekers granted
voluntary departure from the U.S. When these individuals are
interviewed by FPU upon their return to Bulgaria, they typically
admit they are not Roma, and that they sought asylum in the U.S. due
to the lack of economic opportunities in Bulgaria. During the
reporting period there were seventeen Visas 92 cases in Sofia. Due
to the high-fraud rate in this visa category we conduct
investigations into almost all Visas 92 cases and have yet to see
one where we believe the original asylum claim was not fraudulent.
We have sent several cables on this topic in the past year. We have
also seen an increase in the number of family members applying for
B1B2 visas who want to visit relatives (usually children or spouses)
who have claimed asylum and have green cards. In most cases the
family members here admit that they are not Roma and say that their
relatives decided to claim asylum for economic reasons. These visas
are usually denied.


9. COOPERATION WITH HOST GOVERNMENT AUTHORITIES: Cooperation with
Bulgarian authorities remains good. Post receives valuable
assistance from Law Enforcement Agencies, including entry/exit data
upon request from the Bulgarian Border Police database.


10. AREAS OF PARTICULAR CONCERN: At 33 percent, the H2B overstay
rate is certainly worrisome. Our refusal rate in this category is
already high (over 50 percent for the reporting period),and our
challenge is to develop useful criteria that will help us to
distinguish among applicants. Over the past three quarters, we have
for the most part been issuing applicants who previously worked on
H2B visas and honored the terms of those visas, returning to
Bulgaria intermittently for regular, substantial periods. Officers
are more apt to refuse applicants who have used H2B visas and
DHS-approved extensions to spend virtually all of their time over
the last several years in the U.S. Those individuals are building
lives in the U.S. and do not seem to see their futures in Bulgaria.
First-time applicants who cannot articulate any credible plan or
vision for a life in Bulgaria, or those who are long-time employees
in the same occupation in which they seek to work in the U.S.
(waitresses or bartenders, for example),also routinely fail to
overcome 214(b).

FPU continues to monitor closely the major Bulgarian Internet
forums, which openly discuss a variety of Immigration issues,
including how to evade U.S. immigration laws.


11. ALIEN SMUGGLING, TRAFFICKING, ORGANIZED CRIME: Bulgaria is a
transit point for illegal migration and alien smuggling as well as a
source country for illegal migration to the United States. A common
smuggling scheme remains for Bulgarians to travel to Mexico as
"tourists" (they no longer need Mexican visas to do this) and then
be smuggled across the southern U.S. border. This route has been
used for many years, and is probably becoming even more traveled now
that the Mexican visa requirement has been lifted. See the above
comments about false asylum claims.

According to Bulgarian Border Police 7,262 illegal immigrants have
been captured in Bulgaria since the beginning of 2007. Most of the
migrants come from Iraq, Palestine and Turkey via Turkish territory.
The border police also tell us that in 2007 they broke up 11 gangs
that were trafficking people to Bulgaria, arresting the operators.
According to the Ministry of Interior, Bulgaria received 120 million
Euro from the EU to equip National border police with technical
equipment for processing passports with biometric data.

Bulgarian Organized Crime continues to be active and very visible in
Bulgaria, and we continue to tune and enforce our "No Thugs to
America" program. Our goal is to deny visas to all those connected
with organized crime and corruption, and to publicize this intent in
order to emphasize the seriousness of the problem. We hope this
will encourage the Bulgarian public to decry it and the Bulgarian
government to fight it. FPU prepared a new in-house report this
period, supplementing an OC "who's who" it had already circulated,
outlining new structures and developments in the major criminal
organizations. We also maintain databases that can search business
ownership and identify members of boards of directors and executive
officers.


12. HOST COUNTRY PASSPORT: The current Bulgarian passport is a
secure, up-to-date document with appropriate security features that
meet EU requirements. The passport does not yet have biometric
security features apart from a digitalized photo, but counterfeiting
is difficult and incidents of bio-page alteration are rare.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that genuine passports are occasionally
sold or stolen and altered for the purposes of illegal travel, but
we have seen very few cases of stolen or sold Bulgarian passports
used for illegal travel to the U.S. Due to low-quality forgeries,
the majority of these cases are easily detected by the Border
Police. Identity theft is the major concern for the passport
issuing authorities in Bulgaria. According to government officials,
blank passports have never been reported lost or stolen. We expect
that GOB will start replacing current passports with a newly
designed e-Passport sometime in the summer of 2009.


13. STAFFING AND TRAINING: The current Fraud Prevention Manager is
vice consul Carolyn Turpin. She will be replaced by vice consul
Sarah Stewart effective May 22, 2009. Iglika Kolishka is the
Consular Investigator. FPU continues to make increased and
effective use of the latest available anti-fraud technology such as
the ADIS search engine, Lexis/Nexis and CCD text search, in
conjunction with local tracking systems and an image database.

McEldowney