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Couple guilty of immigration fraud
A couple in New Zealand have been found guilty of misleading the immigration authorities and providing false information in an effort to gain residency in the country. The Fijian nationals claimed to be married to Kiwi spouses while continuing a relationship with each other. The court found that the pair had never lived with their New Zealand partners.
Imraan Khan has been sentenced to spend 20 months behind bars for the crime and his partner, Berlinda Williams, has been handed 12 months of home detention. Williams was granted residence in 2008 after claiming she had been married to a Kiwi for over a year. Immigration NZ was convinced at the time that the marriage was genuine.
Khan applied for a work visa two years later also claiming to be married to a New Zealander. However, some of his papers apparently indicated a link to Williams. An investigation by Immigration New Zealand found that rather than being married to Kiwi partners, Khan and Williams had been conducting a relationship with each other.
Williams was also charged with perverting the course of justice after attempting to persuade witnesses to change their statements.
An INZ investigator said the case proved that fraud does not pay.
Imraan Khan has been sentenced to spend 20 months behind bars for the crime and his partner, Berlinda Williams, has been handed 12 months of home detention. Williams was granted residence in 2008 after claiming she had been married to a Kiwi for over a year. Immigration NZ was convinced at the time that the marriage was genuine.
Khan applied for a work visa two years later also claiming to be married to a New Zealander. However, some of his papers apparently indicated a link to Williams. An investigation by Immigration New Zealand found that rather than being married to Kiwi partners, Khan and Williams had been conducting a relationship with each other.
Williams was also charged with perverting the course of justice after attempting to persuade witnesses to change their statements.
An INZ investigator said the case proved that fraud does not pay.
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