A New York cab driver did the unthinkable to a sleeping passenger after driving her to an empty street.
Five months later, immigration officials handed that same man his American citizenship without ever finding out.
Fifteen years after his conviction, the Justice Department finally decided that wrong could no longer stand.
A Cab Driver's Knife, a Blindfold, and a Lie That Worked
Gurmeet Singh entered the United States on a visitor visa in February 1992 and simply never left.
He overstayed for eight years before finally getting a green card in June 2000.
Eleven years later, in May 2011, Singh was driving a cab in New York City when his passenger fell asleep in the back seat.
Singh drove her to an isolated location.
He held a knife to her throat, bound her, gagged her, and blindfolded her.
Then he raped her.
The woman escaped and got help.
Prosecutors convicted Singh of Rape in the First Degree and Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony.
A New York court sentenced him to 20 years in prison.
Here is the part that should make your blood boil.
Singh was naturalized as a US citizen on October 19, 2011 – five months after he raped his passenger.
He never told immigration officials what he had done.
He simply walked through the process and got the same passport as everyone else who earned it honestly.
The Justice Department Finally Closes the File Fifteen Years Later
On February 2, 2026, the Justice Department filed to strip Singh of that citizenship for good.
The case landed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
On August 26, 2026, the court entered judgment and made it official.
Attorney General Todd Blanche did not mince words.
"American citizenship is not a shield for criminals," Blanche said.
"Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist from India, is no longer a US citizen," Blanche added.
Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate went further.
"Singh unlawfully obtained the privileges of US citizenship by concealing horrible criminal acts," Shumate said.
US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. made sure the message landed beyond this one case.
"The Court's judgment sends a strong message to those who obtain citizenship through deceit," Nocella said.
Trial Attorney Christopher Lyerla and Assistant US Attorney Layaliza Soloveichik spent months building the paper trail that made Blanche's announcement possible.
Singh Is One Case in the Largest Denaturalization Sweep in DOJ History
Singh is not an isolated case.
In June 2026, the Justice Department moved to strip citizenship from 17 naturalized criminals in a single sweep, including sex offenders, fraudsters, and drug traffickers.
"Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters," Blanche said of that action.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin backed him up.
"American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly," Mullin said.
Weeks later, the Department filed against 25 more individuals from 17 different countries in a single coordinated round, the largest in Department history.
Those complaints allege attempted murder, child sexual abuse, domestic violence, marriage fraud, and passport fraud.
The Department has now filed 88 denaturalization cases since January 2025, more than any administration has attempted in a comparable stretch.
"Every one of these individuals committed crimes incompatible with US citizenship," Shumate said of that broader push.
"We are moving at record speed to denaturalize those who sought to deceive the federal government," Shumate added.
The Fraud That Sat Untouched for Fifteen Years
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, the government can revoke naturalized citizenship obtained through concealment of material facts or willful misrepresentation.
That is exactly what Singh did.
For fifteen years, that fraud sat untouched while Singh served his sentence behind bars.
The Trump administration's Justice Department went back and caught it anyway.
This is not bureaucratic housekeeping.
This is the Justice Department building a paper trail on every naturalized criminal who lied to get in the door, then coming back for the citizenship itself once the conviction proves the lie.
Singh will finish his 20-year sentence as a convicted rapist and a kidnapper, and when he walks out, he will walk out as a foreign national with no citizenship left to hide behind.
Eighty-seven more cases are moving through that same pipeline right now, and every one of them started with a lie an old system let slide.
That is what accountability looks like when a Justice Department actually decides to use the tools sitting in front of it.
Sources:
- Department of Justice, "Justice Department Secures Denaturalization of Convicted Rapist from India," Office of Public Affairs, August 2026.
- Amy Furr, "DOJ Revokes Naturalized Citizenship of Convicted Rapist," Breitbart, August 31, 2026.
- Department of Justice, "Justice Department Moves to Strip US Citizenship of 17 Naturalized Sex Offenders, Fraudsters, Drug Traffickers," Office of Public Affairs, June 8, 2026.
- Joseph Chalfant, "DOJ Denaturalizes Heinous Criminal Serving 20 Years in Prison," Townhall, August 31, 2026.
- Fox News Staff, "Trump DOJ Unleashes Largest Denaturalization Effort in Department History, Says It's Only Beginning," Fox News, August 2026.
