A San Bernardino County man convicted in September of operating a so-called birth tourism scheme, was sentenced on Dec. 16 to 41 months in federal prison.
At the end of September’s four-day trial, a jury found Liu and Jing Dong, 47, also from Rancho Cucamonga, guilty of one count of conspiracy and 10 counts of international money laundering for running a company called USA Happy Baby. Dong is scheduled to be sentenced in the coming weeks.
Liu’s attorney has not returned a request for comment. Dong’s attorney could not be reached for comment.
Federal authorities searched more than a dozen homes across Southern California during a 2015 operation against the operators of birth tourism schemes. Four years later, authorities charged Liu and Dong and more than a dozen others, including a woman who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 months in prison for running a company known as You Win USA.
Liu and Dong ran a maternity house in Rancho Cucamonga from at least January 2012 to March 2015, according to the statement. They were also accused of renting apartments in Southern California to provide pregnant women from China with short-term housing and other services.
Authorities said they helped their clients obtain visas to get into the United States, offering customs entry guidance, housing, and transportation, as well as assistance with the application process for U.S. legal documents for babies born in the United States.
Within one or two months after giving birth, the women would return to China.
“For tens of thousands of dollars each, defendant helped his numerous customers deceive U.S. authorities and buy U.S. citizenship for their children,” federal prosecutors wrote in court papers. “This criminal conduct is serious and requires a meaningful sentence to promote respect for the law and hold defendant accountable.”
Liu and Dong’s customers often lied on their visa applications about the purpose of their trip to the United States, claiming it was for tourism when, in fact, it was to give birth, as well as about the duration of their stay, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. They were also not forthright about the location of their accommodations, the statement added.
Prosecutors said the pair or their agents also advised their customers to fly to ports of entry perceived to have less customs scrutiny, such as Hawaii, before flying into Los Angeles. They advised their clients to wear loose clothing to cover their pregnancies, as well as the specific customs lines they perceived to be less strict. Liu and Dong, who received money from overseas and used that money to promote their business, also coached the women on how to answer officials’ questions, prosecutors said.
“My intent was always to uphold the values of integrity and responsibility, so I regret any actions or decisions that may have brought us to this moment of judgment,” Liu told the court during his sentencing hearing. “I have tried my best to remain a source of stability for my family, but my incarceration will place them in a more vulnerable position ... I am not here to deflect responsibility, but to seek mercy.”
U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner said the defendants’ family members are often the ones who suffer.
“These are choices you make, not that the court makes,” Klausner said.
