To document the Bidoon, some countries in the region were willing to pay good money to procure Comorian citizenship in bulk, the businessmen claimed.
On that same afternoon the trial judge delivered his opinion finding 'by clear, unequivocal and convincing evidence, that the defendant did procure her citizenship illegally and fraudulently.' He then proceeded to hold the petitioner in contempt for her refusal to answer.
The investigations led to three senators calling for a probe into whether Gorka "falsified his naturalization application or otherwise illegally procured his citizenship".
The justices were considering a criminal statute that penalizes anyone who "procures" U.S. citizenship in a way that is "contrary to law". The government pressed the argument that any lie on an official form, no matter how small, is a violation that could trigger the loss of citizenship.
Fears over the Kuwaiti and Emirati government's agenda in procuring economic citizenships have been accompanied by the deportation of Ahmed Abdulkhaleq, an Emirati bedoun activist, and the pending case of another bedoun rights activist in Kuwait, Hakeem al-Fadhli.
Until now it has never been thought that a certificate of citizenship procured by one who has not satisfied the statutory conditions for citizenship, is nevertheless lawfully procured.
To limit the Government to proof of fraud in such cases is to read 'illegality' out of the statute in every instance where an alien demonstrably not attached to the principles of the Constitution has procured a certificate of citizenship.
In this case it is convincing evidence that petitioner, at the time of his naturalization, was not entitled to the citizenship he procured because he was not attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States and because he was not well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same.
Section 15 authorizes any court by a suit instituted by the United States Attorney to set aside a certificate of naturalization 'on the ground of fraud or on the ground that such certificate of citizenship was illegally procured'.
We are concerned only with the question whether petitioner's qualifications were so lacking that he was not lawfully entitled to the privilege of citizenship which he has procured.
