Cuban immigrant applies to USCIS for citizenship and gets charges for fraud—Faces up to 10 years in prison
Yunier Pérez-Bertemati, a 40-year-old Cuban immigrant, has been charged with multiple federal offenses in Florida after attempting to obtain U.S. citizenship by providing false information.
A 40-year-old Cuban immigrant named Yunier Pérez-Bertemati has been officially charged in the Middle District of Florida with multiple federal offenses related to financial fraud and immigration violations.
According to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the accused had applied for U.S. citizenship while being part of an organization dedicated to stealing financial information.
What fraud does the Cuban immigrant perpetrated in the U.S.?
According to the indictment, between November 2023 and January 2025, Pérez-Bertemati allegedly trafficked cloned credit and debit cards containing data stolen from legitimate accounts.
He also distributed specialized devices used for illegal data theft at ATMs and gas stations. These devices, known as skimmers, capture card information during transactions without users being aware they are being defrauded.
During the naturalization process with USCIS, Yunier Pérez-Bertemati provided false information both in his citizenship application and in an interview with an immigration officer.
This is viewed as a major violation of public trust that may result in immediate application denial and other sanctions.
An investigation, done in cooperation with USCIS, CBP, and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Law Enforcement Division, showed that the individual supplied false representations as part of the immigration process.
Potential penalties if Pérez-Bertemati is found guilty of fraud
Pérez-Bertemati will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert D. Sowell and could face up to 10 years in prison for making false statements in the naturalization application, plus an additional 5 years for providing false information during the federal agent interview.
He is facing up to 10 years in federal prison for each charge connected to fraud through access devices, 15 years for each charge tied to manufacturing access devices, and 2 additional years for each charge related to aggravated identity theft.
In addition, the government is seeking the forfeiture of $9,650, that being the amount the government alleges is related to the proceedings from the crime. This matter falls under the umbrella of Operation Recovering America, which is an initiative designed to target transnational crime related to immigration fraud.
