US Crime
US revokes citizenship of Indian-origin man convicted of rape, kidnapping
The US authorities have revoked the citizenship of an Indian-origin man after he was convicted of rape and kidnapping.
Gurmeet Singh, 55, who worked as a taxi driver, had reportedly kidnapped and raped a woman at knifepoint in New York in 2011, just weeks before he applied for US citizenship.
According to the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Singh was driving a female passenger home in May 2011 when she fell asleep during the journey. He then drove her to a location where there were no witnesses.
“When his passenger awoke, she found Singh on top of her with a knife against her throat. He threatened her, bound and gagged her, blindfolded her, removed her clothes, and raped her,” the DOJ said in a statement.
The victim eventually escaped from the taxi and ran into the street at dawn, where she sought help from a passerby.
The DOJ said Singh concealed the crime during his naturalisation proceedings and subsequently became a US citizen on October 19, 2011.
“After naturalising, Singh was convicted in New York of Rape in the First Degree and Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony and sentenced to 20 years in prison,” the department said.
A federal court's August 26 order revoking Singh’s naturalisation came after the Justice Department filed a complaint against him on February 2.
US Attorney General Todd Blanche welcomed the decision, saying: “Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist from India, is no longer a U.S. citizen.”
“He concealed a rape and kidnapping during the naturalisation process, and a federal court has now revoked his citizenship. This Department took this case across the finish line, and we will continue to move expeditiously on denaturalization referrals. Fraudulently obtained citizenship will not protect criminals from justice,” Blanche said.
According to the US State Department, Singh entered the United States in February 1992 as a visitor for a temporary period not exceeding six months.
He remained in the country without authorisation for several years before a family-based immigrant visa petition allowed him to obtain permanent resident status in June 2000.
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