USCIS: Former Minnesota corrections officer arrested in operation targeting immigration fraud

A former Minnesota corrections officer has been arrested as part of a federal operation targeting suspected immigration fraud.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said that as part of Operation Twin Shield, 45-year-old Morris Brown from Liberia was arrested on Jan. 15 in Minneapolis by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for violating immigration law, including overstaying his student visa and making false claims to U.S. citizenship.

USCIS said that Brown entered the U.S. in 2014 on a non-immigrant student visa that was terminated in 2015 because he didn’t enroll in a full course of study. According to federal immigration officials, Brown also joined the Pennsylvania Army National Guard in 2014, despite not having legal status, but went AWOL (absent without official leave) the next year.

He was apprehended and discharged from the military under other-than-honorable conditions in 2022, USCIS said.

Brown reportedly applied for a Green Card in 2020 under the Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness program, but USCIS said his application was denied due to misrepresentations, including failure to disclose prior military service and a false claim of U.S. citizenship.

In 2024, he applied to naturalize as a U.S. citizen based on prior military service, federal immigration officials said.

USCIS investigators looking into Brown’s application for citizenship found evidence of marriage fraud and prior instances where he falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen in official documents. They also learned he was working as a corrections officer for the state of Minnesota despite having no legal immigration status.

Brown now faces removal proceedings and potential criminal prosecution for immigration fraud, false claims to U.S. citizenship and related offenses, according to USCIS officials.

“Operation Twin Shield continues to deliver results as the Department of Homeland Security relentlessly pursues those who seek to cheat our immigration system,” said USCIS Director Joseph Edlow. “This alien tried every trick in the book to remain in the United States after losing legal status. We will use every tool at our disposal to ensure he faces justice for his many violations of the law.”

The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) said that Brown’s employment with them lasted from May 2023 to October 2025.

DOC officials stated that last month, they provided Brown’s employment eligibility documents to USCIS, adding that they fully cooperated with federal authorities.

The department noted that it followed federal document verification requirements when hiring Brown.

“If these federal allegations are accurate, this individual engaged in sophisticated efforts to misrepresent their identity, extending well beyond Minnesota. We are grateful to USCIS and ICE for their work in investigating and addressing immigration fraud,” said DOC Commissioner Paul Schnell. “We will continue to comply with federal law and work professionally with our federal partners.”
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