Jingui Lin, a Chinese national, was sentenced on February 11, 2026, for possessing a fraudulent passport. The sentencing followed Lin’s earlier guilty plea to violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 1546(a). U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo ordered that Lin serve the jail time he had already completed since his detention began on October 28, 2025. United States Attorney David I. Courcelle announced that Lin will remain in immigration custody while awaiting deportation.
Court documents show that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers encountered Lin on October 28, 2025. They determined he had entered the country without inspection and was eligible for immigration custody. During this process, officers found a fraudulent Chinese passport in Lin’s possession. The document contained his photograph but listed another name and included both a fake United States visa and a counterfeit CBP admission stamp. Authorities confirmed that Lin did not have legal documentation to enter or stay in the United States.
The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at combating illegal immigration and dismantling criminal organizations involved in violent crime. This operation brings together resources from the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection led the investigation into this case. Assistant United States Attorney Christine M. Calogero from the General Crimes Unit is overseeing the prosecution.
