Phony Immigration Officer Exposed in Multi-Year Visa Scam Operation

A 29-year-old Texas woman has been taken into custody and charged in connection with what federal authorities describe as a multi-year fraud scheme involving impersonation of immigration officials and false promises related to visas and employment, as reported by Fox News.

According to the Department of Justice, Mayra Collins, a resident of Brownsville, Texas, is facing five federal charges tied to conduct in 2022 and 2025. The charges include two counts of wire fraud and three counts of impersonating a federal agent, Acting U.S. Attorney John Marck announced.

Federal officials allege Collins falsely presented herself as an immigration officer and claimed she could expedite visa applications. Prosecutors say she took money from four victims as part of that scheme.

Woman exposed running visa fraud scheme spanning years, posing as immigration officer https://t.co/Hx4muXlD3F #FoxNews

— Fearless45 (@Fearless45Trump) April 29, 2026

Authorities further allege that in 2025, Collins impersonated a U.S. Border Patrol agent and told at least one individual that she had influence over federal hiring decisions.

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According to the charging documents, Collins allegedly told that individual that job opportunities were available but required payment for uniforms and ballistic vests before employment could begin. Officials say the victim sent money based on those representations.

The Department of Justice stated that Collins “never worked for the United States” and “had no power to provide victims of her schemes with Visas or employment” with Border Patrol.

If convicted, Collins faces up to 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud counts and an additional three years for the impersonation charges. She also faces a maximum fine of $250,000. Collins is expected to make her initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Julie Hampton on Thursday.

Lora Ries, director of the Border Security and Immigration Center at the Heritage Foundation, said the structure of immigration laws and agencies creates opportunities for fraud. “The needless complexity of immigration law and the fragmented immigration bureaucracy spread across five federal departments are fertile ground for fraudsters,” Ries said.

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Ries also said that Democrats “helped create these systemic conditions because they facilitate illegal immigration.” She added, “This perpetrator exploiting that confusing and scattered system is a consequence of their own making.”

She further stated that “Congress should greatly simplify immigration law and consolidate many of the immigration agencies for a better immigration system and to prevent such fraud.”

The charges against Collins come as federal authorities continue to investigate a broader fraud operation in Minnesota involving businesses linked to the Somali immigrant community. Federal officials conducted raids at 22 locations Tuesday morning as part of that investigation.

Authorities allege that some of the businesses involved, including childcare facilities, were billing for services that were not provided.

Vice President JD Vance, who leads the administration’s fraud task force, said the government is committed to pursuing those cases. “The task force and the DOJ will be relentless in exposing these fraudsters wherever they may be hiding,” Vance said.

Ries said that “Americans, particularly Minnesotans, are pleased to see the ongoing pursuit of justice against fraud in that state.”

She added, “We’ve only seen a glimpse of both the immigration fraud and welfare fraud that have occurred in Minnesota,” and said, “Significant criminal and immigration consequences are needed for all the perpetrators to achieve justice and to send a message to others throughout the country not to engage in fraud.”

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