NEW YORK — Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Michael Alfonso, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Newark Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), announced the unsealing of a Complaint against Bronx-based immigration attorney Kofi Amankwaa and his son, Kofi Amankwaa, Jr. The duo is accused of executing a large-scale immigration fraud scheme. They are scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
According to U.S. Attorney Williams, Kofi Amankwaa and his son allegedly abused the U.S. immigration system for financial gain by fraudulently claiming their clients were victims of domestic abuse under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). This Act allows noncitizen victims of domestic abuse a path to lawful permanent residence status. The defendants reportedly directed clients to sign fraudulent VAWA petitions, which Amankwaa, as an attorney, signed under penalty of perjury.
Acting Special Agent in Charge Alfonso emphasized the deceitful practices employed by Amankwaa, highlighting HSI’s commitment to protecting U.S. citizenship applicants from such fraud.
The Complaint outlines that from September 2016 through November 2023, the Amankwaas met with clients and directed them to file fraudulent VAWA petitions, falsely stating they were abused by U.S. citizen children. They also used these filings to request advance parole travel documents, enabling their clients to travel temporarily abroad and return to the U.S. The scheme, however, often failed to secure lawful permanent resident status due to fraud detection, leading to application denials. The defendants typically charged $6,000 plus administrative fees for their services.
In November 2023, following client complaints about the fraudulent abuse allegations, Kofi Amankwaa’s license to practice law in New York was suspended.
Kofi Amankwaa, 69, and Kofi Amankwaa, Jr., 37, both from South River, New Jersey, face charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to commit immigration fraud, with a maximum sentence of five years, and a charge of immigration fraud, carrying a maximum of ten years in prison. These sentences are the maximum prescribed by Congress and are subject to judicial discretion.