Court eases fraud deportations

WASHINGTON, June 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously made it easier Monday to deport an alien convicted of an "aggravated felony" fraud.

Manoj Nijhawan emigrated from India to the United States in 1985. In 2002, he was indicted and convicted on several counts of fraud. None of the statutes involved required a finding by the jury of the amount of loss.

But at sentencing Nijhawan conceded the loss exceeded $100 million, and the judge sentenced him to 41 months in prison and restitution of $683 million.

As he neared the end of his term in 2005, the government said he had been guilty of an "aggravated offense" and began deportation proceedings.

U.S. law says any alien convicted of an aggravated felony can be deported. Included in that category is "fraud or deceit" involving the loss of more than $10,000.

Nijhawan argued that since there was no jury finding of loss, his deportation was not required under the statute, but immigration officials and eventually a federal appeals court in Philadelphia said the finding of loss was not necessary.

Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed. Writing for a unanimous court, Justice Stephen Breyer said the amount of loss was related to the "circumstances" of a fraud, not an element of the aggravated crime.

(Nijhawan vs. Holder, No. 08-495)