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Mariya Chernykh, A russian immigrant whoever alleged sham marriage to a Riverside man had been discovered when her spouse became the main Dec. 2 San Bernardino terrorist shooting investigation, pleaded accountable to conspiracy, perjury and two counts of creating false statements Thursday in federal court in Riverside.
Under a plea agreement with prosecutors, Chernykh faces as much as 20 years in jail and $1 million in fines. She actually is planned become sentenced Nov. 20.
Chernykh’s lawyer David Kaloyanides, following the court ended up being adjourned, stated the regards to the plea contract had been “not for general general public usage. ”
Chernykh additionally faces deportation, and has now been in the Adelanto Detention center in custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since soon after her arrest. She starred in court Thursday in handcuffs and an orange jumpsuit.
Authorities say Chernykh’s sibling, Tatiana Farook, that is married to Syed Raheel Farook, the bro of 1 of the San Bernardino shooters, arranged on her look at this now to get hitched to a grouped family members buddy in 2014 so she could get immigration advantages.
Authorities don’t believe the two couples helped plan or carry out of the Dec. 2 assault. However the guns utilized to destroy 14 people and wound 22 was indeed purchased by Chernykh’s spouse, federal prosecutors state, and the ones ties brought scrutiny that led all four of these become faced with immigration fraud.
Chernykh could be the defendant that is second plead accountable. On Jan. 10, Raheel Farook admitted to a single felony cost of conspiring to commit fraud that is immigration. He could be scheduled become sentenced Nov. 13.
Tatiana Farook is planned to attend test in March. Chernykh’s spouse, Enrique Marquez Jr., who faces more charges that are serious is scheduled to attend test Sept. 28.
How they’re related
Chernykh and her sibling — then Tatiana Gigliotti — stumbled on the U.S. In July 2009 on three-month visas, and never left.
In 2013, Gigliotti married Raheel Farook, cousin of Syed Rizwan Farook, who carried out of the San Bernardino assault alongside his spouse, Tashfeen Malik, in the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino. The shooters had been killed in a gunfight with authorities a hours that are few.
The Farook brothers spent my youth in Riverside across the street to Marquez’s family members, and also the guys had been buddies.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Robinson, during’s hearing, said Farook set up Chernykh and Marquez; they were married in 2014 thursday.
Nevertheless the wedding had been a sham, Robinson stated, which Marquez ended up being compensated $200 a to go along with month.
Sham wedding allegations
Robinson stated Chernykh and Marquez lied to authorities on a few occasions pre and post the Dec. 2 assault, pretending they lived together along side Raheel and Tatiana Farook in Corona.
On Dec. 1, 2 days before Chernykh and Marquez had a gathering with ending up in U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, they created a backdated rent to imagine they lived in the Corona household, court papers state.
In fact, Robinson stated, Chernykh lived in Ontario along with her boyfriend, who’s the paternalfather of her kid, while Marquez lived along with his moms and dads in Riverside.
“Mariyah Chernykh fundamentally admitted to lying to FBI agents have been urgently looking for responses rigtht after the assault to ensure there have been no additional threats to safety that is public” said FBI l. A. Assistant Director Deirdre Fike in a news launch Thursday.
The wedding permitted Chernykh to try to get permanent residence. Court papers say the applying ended up being rejected Dec. 3 whenever she and Marquez neglected to go to the CIS conference.
Marquez, because it proved, had been suicidal and hospitalized that day after realizing Rizwan Farook had utilized firearms Marquez bought to transport the Dec. Out 2 assaults, based on an affidavit filed in federal court.
Appropriate problems
Marquez had been faced with conspiracy to give product help to terrorists, making statements that are false the purchase of firearms, wedding fraudulence and abuse of visas, licenses and other papers.
Then in April, wedding fraudulence conspiracy costs had been filed against Raheel Farook plus the Russian sisters.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement started deportation proceedings against Chernykh. Kaloyanides stated during the time of her arrest that she had sent applications for asylum, an activity that will simply simply simply take years.
In September, an immigration judge denied a movement to get rid of the deportation proceedings, but postponed further hearings through to the case that is criminal. Chernykh’s immigration lawyer Niels Frenzen stated by phone Thursday that she’s got a status seminar when you look at the treatment situation planned for Feb. 8.