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Pakistani nationals indicted in multi-year visa fraud scheme in US
If convicted, both men could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
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Pranavi Sharma - Sat, 24, May 2025
- 01:00 EDT
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Stock image. / istock
Two Texas residents originally from Pakistan were indicted on May 23 for running a years-long visa fraud operation that federal prosecutors say exploited U.S. immigration programs for personal profit.
Abdul Hadi Murshid, 39, and Muhammad Salman Nasir, 35, along with the Law Offices of D. Robert Jones PLLC and Reliable Ventures, Inc., face charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, visa fraud, money laundering, and racketeering. Murshid and Nasir are also charged with unlawfully obtaining and attempting to obtain U.S. citizenship.
Federal prosecutors allege that the defendants submitted fraudulent employment-based visa applications including EB-2, EB-3, and H-1B visas—for foreign nationals who paid to enter and remain in the U.S. under false pretenses. To create the appearance of legitimate job offers, the defendants allegedly placed ads in newspapers for jobs that didn’t exist. Once the Department of Labor certified the positions, they filed petitions with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and submitted applications for legal permanent residency on behalf of the applicants.
To make the fake jobs appear real, the indictment says the defendants took payments from visa seekers and then returned part of the money as fake wages.
“These defendants are charged with engaging in extensive measures to hide a massive, multi-year, immigration fraud scheme through which they reaped substantial personal financial gain,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Chad E. Meacham. “Pursuing criminal charges to deter and punish this type of flagrant disregard for the lawful immigration process is a top priority of this Office.”
FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock said, “The defendants allegedly oversaw an international criminal enterprise for years that repeatedly undermined our nation’s immigration laws.”
Murshid and Nasir appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Rebecca Rutherford on May 23. A detention hearing is scheduled for May 30 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brian McKay.
If convicted, both men could face up to 20 years in federal prison. Murshid also faces potential denaturalization.
The case was investigated by the FBI, with assistance from multiple federal agencies including Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Labor. Prosecutors Ted Hocter, Tiffany H. Eggers, and Jongwoo Chung are leading the case.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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