A Henderson couple were among 29 people arrested Tuesday in connection with an immigration fraud ring that authorities suspect of aiding members of Iran's most infamous terrorism organization.
Mohsen Arefe, 42, and his wife, Mashid, of Henderson, were charged with forging immigration documents to make visa and asylum applications for immigrants not entitled to legal status in the United States, according to a federal indictment issued Tuesday in the Central District of California.
The couple and at least 13 others allegedly belong to an operation that helped hundreds of immigrants gain entry to the U.S., including members of the Mujahedeen Khalq Organization, an Iranian terrorist group linked to the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, U.S. Attorney Alejandro Mayorkas said.
Another 14 individuals were arrested for being in the country illegally and will be deported, U.S. attorney's office spokesman Thom Mrozek said.
Those named in the indictment also were charged with conspiracy, making false statements to the United States, submitting false documents to the Immigration and Naturalization Service and trafficking in false identity documents.
Moshen and Mashid Arefe, who operated from a Beverly Hills, Calif., business called Vijeh Co. and later moved to Henderson, were released on their own recognizance Tuesday afternoon after an appearance at the Federal Foley Building. They and the others named in the indictment will face arraignment Monday, Mrozek said.
Authorities have fingered San Fernando Valley, Calif., resident Bahram Tabatabai as the group's alleged ringleader. Tabatabai, 43, is suspected of helping clients in the Middle East and Europe to file fraudulent documents -- ranging from birth certificates to school transcripts and employment records -- in support of visa applications.
Tabatabai allegedly represented more than 300 clients during their asylum interviews with the INS. Authorities have declined to specify how many successfully gained entry into the country.
State Department officials have said that Tabatabai, an American of Iranian origin, was aware that many of his clients were affiliated with the Mujahedeen Khalq. But none of the 29 people arrested have been charged with involvement in terrorism, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth White said in a phone interview Tuesday.
The Mujahedeen, now based in Iraq and working closely with Saddam Hussein, carried out attacks on Iranian embassies in 13 countries in 1992, according to documents provided by the U.S. attorney's office. The State Department lists the group as one of 30 international terrorist organizations.
But a Los Angeles law enforcement official said in an interview Tuesday "there is no evidence that we've found in this case that those arrested in this fraud ring were coming to the U.S. to commit acts of domestic terrorism."
The Mujahedeen Khalq, a member of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, denied involvement in the forgery ring. In a statement the group said it has "always functioned within the law of the country in which they have activity and are not, and have never been engaged in illegal deeds."
David Zebley of the State Department's Bureau of Diplomatic Security said Tabatabai used a network of fake document suppliers, including Shahbod Noori, editor of Tehran International Weekly Magazine, in his alleged operation.
After assorted fraudulent immigration papers were obtained for applicants, they met with a Tabatabai employee in Cyprus to prepare for interviews with immigration officials. In some cases, Zebley said Tabatabai created new identities for clients who had criminal records or ties to subversive organizations. Tabatabai would then invent stories of oppression in their homeland, Zebley said.
Numerous electronically monitored conversations showed that Tabatabai knew some of his clients had ties to the Mujahedeen and the clients themselves admitted to being members, Zebley said. The clients, the majority of them Iranians, were charged anywhere from $2,000 to $12,000 for the services, Zebley said.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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