Buckeye Reporter

A federal grand jury has indicted a former medical doctor on charges of naturalization fraud in Cleveland. The indictment alleges that Yousif Abdulraouf Alhallaq, 46, from Canton, provided false information on his U.S. citizenship application and during an interview.

Alhallaq, originally from Kuwait and a Jordanian citizen when he entered the United States on an H1B visa in 2006, applied for permanent residency in 2011. He was granted lawful status and worked as a medical doctor in Northeast Ohio since around 2012. In December 2014, Alhallaq allegedly poisoned a pregnant victim to terminate her pregnancy without her knowledge. He was charged with attempted murder and felonious assault in March 2021 by the Stark County Court of Common Pleas. Alhallaq pleaded guilty and received a four-year prison sentence in September 2021.

Before these charges were filed, Alhallaq submitted Form N-400 for U.S. citizenship in late 2017. On this form, he answered "no" to questions about involvement in killing or hurting someone and committing crimes without arrest. During a March 2018 interview with an immigration officer, he confirmed these answers under oath. Alhallaq became a naturalized U.S. citizen on May 4, 2018.

The grand jury claims that despite knowing his criminal acts against his unborn child in 2014, Alhallaq signed the naturalization application in 2017 and verbally confirmed false information during the 2018 interview.

If convicted of naturalization fraud, Alhallaq could face up to ten years in prison. His sentence will be determined by the court based on factors such as his criminal record and role in the offense but will not exceed the statutory maximum.

The investigation leading to this indictment was conducted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Matthew W. Shepherd is prosecuting the case for the Northern District of Ohio.

It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation; Alhallaq is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.