Editorial credit: PJ McDonnell / Shutterstock.com Users Lost More Than $1 Billion While Zelle Operator Controlled by Major Banks Knew the Platform Was Vulnerable to Scammers AG James Encourages New Yorkers Who Lost Money to Zelle Scams to File a Report with OAG’s Consumer Frauds Bureau NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James […]
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has introduced sweeping updates to marriage-based green card policies—effective August 1, 2025—mandating in-person interviews in nearly all spousal visa cases and sharply increasing evidentiary requirements to detect fraudulent petitions. What’s Changed? 1. Mandatory In-Person Interviews for Nearly All Cases USCIS now requires face-to-face interviews in essentially all marriage-based […]
Editorial credit: Lyonstock / Shutterstock.com U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is issuing policy guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual that will enhance our capability to screen and vet family-based immigrant visa petitions. This update explains requirements and adjudication of these petitions, including eligibility criteria, filing, interviews, and decisions. Fraudulent, frivolous, or otherwise non-meritorious family-based immigrant visa petitions erode confidence in family-based pathways to lawful permanent resident (LPR) status […]
Editorial credit: lev radin / Shutterstock.com Former Nassau County Resident Marc Henry Menard Allegedly Stole Over $600,000 and Used Investors’ Money for Lavish Trips, Luxury Vehicles, and Expensive Designer Purchases NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced the arrest and indictment of Florida resident Marc Henry Menard, formerly of Mineola, New York, […]
By Mary Campbell | Editorial credit: RAMAN SHAUNIA / shutterstock.com The REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005, was a significant step in enhancing national security following the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Based on recommendations from the 9/11 Commission, the Act established a uniform set of security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses […]
By Claudia Irizarry Aponte | Editorial Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY Influential health care union 1199SEIU urged postponing the April 1 start of a single administrator to replace hundreds of companies the governor has called a costly “racket.” Gov. Hochul pushed back Friday on a major health union’s demand that she delay moving home care for more […]
By Mary Campbell Bronx, NY: A Bronx-based immigration attorney was sentenced Wednesday, February 26 to 70 months in federal prison for his role in a large-scale immigration fraud scheme that defrauded his clients out of $16 million. Kofi Amankwaa, 70, was also ordered to pay restitution in the full amount of $16 million, along with […]
By Esther Claudette Gittens | Editorial credit: lucasImages / shuttterstock.com New York Attorney General Letitia James recently achieved a major legal milestone in her ongoing lawsuit against Citibank (Citi), with a federal judge rejecting Citi’s motion to dismiss the case. The lawsuit, which alleges that Citi failed to adequately protect its customers from fraud and […]
NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today filed a lawsuit against Payless Furniture, Inc. d/b/a 1StopBedrooms, a Brooklyn-based furniture store, for cheating New York consumers. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) opened an investigation into 1StopBedrooms after receiving hundreds of complaints and found that the store charged customers exorbitant cancellation […]
Editorial credit: Leonard Zhukovsky / shutterstock.com AG James Has Secured More Than $10 Million From Transportation Companies, Won Criminal Convictions of 11 Individuals NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced new measures to stop a major source of Medicaid fraud by transportation companies that use fake billing schemes to steal from […]