Justice Department seeks to revoke citizenship of 40 naturalized Americans

The Justice Department filed denaturalization actions against 40 naturalized citizens accused of crimes, calling the cases the largest such initiative in a single period during Donald Trump’s administration. The requests were submitted in federal courts between Aug. 21 and Oct. 2.

Federal law allows a court to revoke naturalized citizenship if the government proves it was obtained through concealment of a material fact or willful misrepresentation. One person named in the cases is Jinchao Wei, a former Navy sailor convicted in 2025 of espionage-related charges; prosecutors said he concealed his conduct during the naturalization process.

The department filed a memo in 2025 directing its civil division to expand denaturalization efforts. The Guardian cited a New York Times report that the government had identified at least 384 people for possible cases and that about 120 people were denaturalized from 2017 through late 2025.

Read the full story at theguardian.com.