Vance, Labor Dept. To Crackdown On Fraudulent Migrant Workers In U.S.

He said some of the operations under investigation are believed to involve forced-labor networks and human trafficking organizations.

Labor’s Office of Inspector General has already “uncovered widespread schemes in which employers and labor brokers submitted fraudulent applications, exploited foreign workers through coercive wage-kickback arrangements, and undercut American workers by flooding the market with below-wage labor.”

Department of Homeland Security assessments so far have found as much as 21 percent of the H-1B petitions were fraudulent, The Post reported.

D’Esposito also told Fox Business’ Mornings with Maria that the investigation will examine alleged abuses involving both H-1B visa holders and recipients of employment-based green cards.

He said investigators are reviewing cases in which foreign workers may have improperly displaced American employees or obtained immigration benefits through fraudulent means, The Post said.

“This is another example where fraud is fueling violent crime,” D’Esposito said, adding that the visa fraud “is tied to cartels, is tied to transnational gangs.”