Haitian fraudster gets comeuppance from Trump judge

A Haitian fraudster learned the hard way that when it comes to citizenship, the U.S. government can giveth and taketh away.

Joff Stenn Wroy Philossaint, a 35-year-old Haitian national, applied to become an American citizen in early 2020. While his citizenship application was pending, Philossaint participated in an elaborate wire fraud and money laundering scheme in Florida.

'You will lose what you unlawfully gained.'

Philossaint and his co-conspirators submitted 40 fraudulent applications on behalf of numerous businesses, seeking roughly $3.8 million from COVID-19 relief programs, said the Department of Justice. The applications falsely certified the businesses' revenue, number of employees, and expenses.

The Haitian later acknowledged that after the conspirator business owners received their paydays, they paid him a fee of approximately 10% of the value of the loans, which amounted to approximately $549,000.

While ripping off his would-be countrymen, Philossaint lied in an interview with a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer that he had never made false misrepresentations to receive a public benefit in the United States and had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested — false representations that led to his naturalization as an American citizen.

Philossaint pleaded guilty in 2022 to wire fraud and money laundering charges and was found guilty in February 2023 of illegally obtaining his U.S. citizenship. He was sentenced in June 2023 to 50 months in federal prison.

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The flag of Philossaint's one-time homeland flies over Fort Lauderdale, Florida. James D. Morgan/Getty Images

Of the five defendants charged in the case, Philossaint was the only individual sent to prison, reported the Miami Herald. Although initially charged in connection with the fraud scheme, the Haitian's former fiancée, Florida lawyer Mariel Tollinchi, was acquitted on all charges in 2024

The DOJ announced on Tuesday that Philossaint has been stripped of his American citizenship per the orders of U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith, an appointee of President Donald Trump.

"United States citizenship is one of the greatest privileges our nation can offer, and it must be earned honestly," U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida said in a statement.

"This defendant built his path to citizenship on false statements while stealing millions from programs meant to keep small businesses alive during the pandemic," continued Reding Quiñones. "The court’s order revoking his citizenship restores accountability and reinforces a simple principle: If you lie to obtain immigration benefits and commit federal crimes, you will lose what you unlawfully gained."

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