HSI Investigation Leads to Voter Fraud Charges Against Chinese National

Boston: The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a statement following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that resulted in charges against a Chinese national for voter fraud. According to Homeland Security, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts announced charges against Yupeng Sun, a Chinese national, for fraudulent voter registration and fraudulent voting. Court filings revealed that Sun submitted an online voter registration in Massachusetts on October 10, 2024, impersonating another Chinese national with legal permanent resident (LPR) status. Sun then cast an early voting ballot at Malden City Hall for the 2024 presidential election on October 31, continuing to impersonate the victim. After these actions, Sun submitted several anonymous tips to HSI and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), accusing the impersonated victim of illegal voting in the 2024 U.S. presidential elec tion and claiming the victim was not a U.S. citizen but a permanent resident. Sun is also accused of impersonating the victim and the victim's wife in April 2024 by submitting fraudulent forms to USCIS to abandon their LPR status, leading to removal proceedings for the couple in June 2024 upon their return from an international trip. HSI New England arrested Sun on August 19. Each charge of fraudulent registration and fraudulent voting carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. The defendant may face deportation following any sentence. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin commented on the case, emphasizing the importance of election security as national security and asserting that only American citizens should participate in electing American leaders. The charges underscore the efforts of HSI and federal partners in maintaining election integrity. Jeff Grimming, Acting Special Agent in Charge of HSI New England, and U.S. Attorney Leah Foley announced the charges, with assistance from the Lexington and Andover Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Nagelberg of the Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case. This investigation is part of the Trump Administration's broader initiative to prevent non-citizens from voting in American elections. Similar recent cases include the sentencing of a Colombian national for identity theft to vote illegally, arrests of non-citizens from Slovakia and Australia for illegal voting, and charges against four non-citizens in New Jersey for election-related offenses. In recent months, DHS has implemented further measures to secure American elections. These include warnings to secretaries of state about non-citizen voter registrations, FEMA's new requirements for grant recipients on election integrity, and DHS's directive for ICE to enforce stricter penalties for non-citizens who illegally vote, including deportation.