Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Two Texas residents, Abdul Hadi Murshid, 39, and Muhammad Salman Nasir, 35, both originally from Pakistan, a law firm, and a business entity were charged by indictment with conspiracy to defraud the United States, visa fraud, money laundering conspiracy, and Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act (RICO) conspiracy, announced Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham. Murshid and Nasir were also charged with unlawfully obtaining and attempting to obtain United States citizenship.
According to the indictment, Abdul Hadi Murshid, Muhammad Salman Nasir, the Law Offices of D. Robert Jones PLLC, and Reliable Ventures, Inc. engaged in a scheme to commit visa fraud to enrich themselves and others, and to cause individuals to fraudulently obtain entry into and immigration status in the United States. It is alleged that Murshid, Nasir, and others submitted and caused to be submitted false and fraudulent visa applications for individuals who were not United States citizens (hereinafter referred to as “visa seekers”), and applications to adjust status of the visa seekers so the visa seekers could enter and remain in the United States.
“These defendants are charged with engaging in extensive measures to hide a massive, multi-year, immigration fraud scheme through which they reaped substantial personal financial gain,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Chad E. Meacham. “Pursuing criminal charges to deter and punish this type of flagrant disregard for the lawful immigration process is a top priority of this Office.”
“The defendants allegedly oversaw an international criminal enterprise for years that repeatedly undermined our nation’s immigration laws. These laws are necessary to protect national security and safeguard the lawful immigration process,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners will hold any individual accountable that misuses their position of trust for personal profit.”
As part of the scheme, the indictment alleges that the defendants exploited the EB-2, EB-3, and H-1B visa programs. Specifically, the defendants caused classified advertisements to be placed in a daily periodical for non-existent jobs. These advertisements were placed in order to satisfy a Department of Labor (“DOL”) requirement to offer the position to United States citizens before hiring foreign nationals. Once they received the fraudulently obtained certification for from the Department of Labor, the defendants filed a petition to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to obtain an immigrant visa for the visa seekers. At the time the petitions were submitted, the defendants also submitted an application for legal permanent residence so that the visa seekers could also obtain a green card. According to the indictment, to make the non-existent jobs look legitimate, the defendants received payment from visa seekers, then returned a portion of the money back to the visa seekers as purported payroll.
The defendants made their initial appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Rebecca Rutherford on May 23, 2025, and the government moved for their detention. The detention hearings are scheduled for May 30, 2025, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian McKay.
An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Like all defendants, Murshid, Nasir, and the business entities are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in federal prison. Murshid faces denaturalization if convicted of unlawfully obtaining and attempting to obtain his United States citizenship.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. The Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service, and the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General provided significant assistance to the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ted Hocter, Tiffany H. Eggers, and Jongwoo Chung are prosecuting the case.