A federal court in the United States has formally stripped 55-year-old Gurmeet Singh of his American citizenship after it was revealed that he concealed a violent kidnapping and rape during his naturalization process.
The 2011 Attack and Conviction
Singh, a native of India who worked as a taxi driver in New York, committed the assault in May 2011. According to the U.S. Justice Department, he targeted a female passenger who fell asleep during her ride home. When she woke up, Singh was holding a knife to her throat, after which he bound, gagged, blindfolded, and raped her. The victim managed to escape the cab at dawn and sought help on the street.
Despite having committed the violent crime just weeks prior, Singh concealed the incident and successfully obtained his U.S. citizenship in October 2011. In 2014, a New York court convicted him of rape in the first degree and kidnapping in the second degree as a sexually motivated felony, sentencing him to 20 years in prison.
U.S. Government Action
On August 26, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York entered a judgment revoking Singh’s naturalization.
Highlighting the Department of Justice’s stance, Attorney General Todd Blanche stated, “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… Fraudulently obtained citizenship will not protect criminals from justice.”
Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate and U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. echoed these remarks, emphasizing that the denaturalization judgment serves as a strong warning against acquiring citizenship through deceit.
Background on Immigration Status
Singh originally entered the United States in February 1992 on a temporary six-month visitor visa. He remained in the country unlawfully for years before eventually adjusting his status to a permanent resident in June 2000 through a family-based immigrant visa petition, which ultimately paved the way for his fraudulent naturalization in 2011.
