The United States has revoked the citizenship of an Indian-origin man who was convicted of abducting and raping a woman after he concealed the crime during the naturalisation process.
The US Justice Department said in a statement that Gurmeet Singh, 55, concealed his criminal past while applying for US citizenship, which he obtained just months after committing the crime.
The US District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered a judgment revoking Singh’s naturalisation and requiring him to surrender his citizenship.
“American citizenship is not a shield for criminals,” US Attorney General Todd Blanche said.
“Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist from India, is no longer a US citizen. He concealed a rape and kidnapping during the naturalisation process, and a federal court has now revoked his citizenship,” Blanche said.
He added that the Justice Department had taken the case “across the finish line” and would continue to move expeditiously on denaturalisation referrals.
“Fraudulently obtained citizenship will not protect criminals from justice,” he said.
US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said the judgment, which requires Singh to surrender his “wrongfully obtained citizenship”, sends a strong message to individuals who obtain citizenship through deceit.
“It also demonstrates the Administration’s resolve to pursue denaturalization proceedings in all cases permitted by law and supported by the evidence,” Nocella said.
According to the Justice Department, Singh entered the United States in February 1992 as a visitor for a temporary period not exceeding six months. He remained in the country without authorisation for several years until a family-based immigrant visa petition allowed him to become a permanent resident in June 2000.
In May 2011, Singh, who was working as a taxi driver, abducted a female passenger and raped her at knifepoint.
According to the Justice Department, he threatened the woman, bound and gagged her, blindfolded her, removed her clothes and raped her. The victim later escaped from the taxi and ran to a person on the street for help at dawn.
Singh concealed the crime, which he had committed just weeks before filing his application to naturalise as a US citizen. He was granted US citizenship on October 19, 2011.
Three years later, Singh was convicted in New York of first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping as a sexually motivated felony. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
