US charges six in Massachusetts over decade-long sham marriage ring
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The gist
Federal prosecutors charged six Massachusetts residents over a ring they say arranged hundreds of sham marriages.
Prosecutors say it earned over $6 million; the case follows a larger marriage-fraud bust.
Background
Jennifer Gonzalez, a 43-year-old Fall River resident and U.S. citizen whom prosecutors call the ringleader, is accused of arranging 18-20 sham marriages a year for over a decade. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley said at a Boston news conference that Gonzalez charged about $38,000-$40,000 per marriage and that the ring generated over $6 million in profit. Foley said her office learned of the scheme after someone came forward. The charges were announced two months after the Justice Department charged 11 people over more than 1,000 sham marriages involving Chinese nationals and U.S. citizens.
How it unfolded
- 2019 -2026Gonzalez allegedly applied for and received SNAP benefits without listing income from her sham marriage business or anyone else in her household.
- 2024In a recording cited by prosecutors, Gonzalez said she stopped doing weddings at the end of 2024 because that's when Trump was becoming president.
- 2025Gonzalez said she suspended her business in 2025 because immigration was "a little harsh."
- Oct 21, 2026Federal prosecutors in Massachusetts announced charges against six people — five from Fall River and one from Attleboro — for allegedly arranging hundreds of sham marriages to obtain unlawful immigration benefits.
- Oct 21, 2026Gonzalez and five others were charged with conspiracy to harbor immigrants, harboring immigrants, conspiracy to commit marriage fraud, and marriage fraud; five were arrested Wednesday, while Hill is serving a state prison sentence for a firearms offense.
- Oct 21, 2026U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said Gonzalez was the mastermind, charged about $38,000-$40,000 per marriage and arranged 18-20 sham marriages per year for over a decade; Foley said the ring generated over $6 million in profit and Gonzalez fraudulently collected over $124,000 in SNAP benefits.
- Oct 21, 2026Prosecutors said Gonzalez invested proceeds in businesses and property in the Dominican Republic; the defendants face potential sentences totaling 25 years in prison on the three charges combined.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- Foley said Gonzalez ran "a very sophisticated operation" that could have gone on much longer if not for a tip, describing couples who stayed married a few years, divorced, then remarried another immigrant a month later.
- Official
- Shawn Saucier of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said the case shows marriage "is not a loophole" and that marriage fraud is not victimless.