By Bryan Manabat
bryan@mvariety.com
Variety News Staff
A BANGLADESHI national living in the CNMI said he is prepared to testify against Venerando Martin, who has been indicted on five counts of visa fraud.
Hiron Mollah told Variety he was among those victimized by Martin, who is accused of fraudulently filing green card applications for himself and 242 others under the C16 eligibility category, which requires continuous residence in the United States since before Jan. 1, 1972.
Mollah said he asked the CNMI Attorney General’s Office last month to investigate Martin’s activities. He added that about 15 individuals, mostly Bangladeshi nationals on Rota, paid between $2,000 and $3,000 for green card processing under the C16 category.
A Rota resident who requested anonymity said Martin traveled to the island on July 21, 2024, with his wife and daughter to meet with individuals regarding C16 applications, payments, and supporting documents.
“I paid Martin $3,500,” Mollah said in an interview Tuesday. He said Martin told him earlier this year that he qualified for C16 eligibility because of his longtime residence in the CNMI.
Later, Mollah said, he read a news article in which an immigration attorney warned that applying under C16 was a scam. When he confronted Martin about it, Martin allegedly told him, “Don’t listen to those lawyers. Just wait for your approval.”
Mollah said Martin questioned why U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services would accept his application and fees if he was not eligible.
He also said his Employment Authorization Document was mailed to Martin’s post office box. “Before releasing it to me, Martin asked for $500. Otherwise, he said he would not give me the EAD,” Mollah said.
USCIS records show Mollah received receipts for his I-765 Employment Authorization application and I-485 Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status, dated Sept. 5, 2024, using Martin’s mailing address.
On Oct. 30, a federal grand jury in the District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands indicted Martin on five counts of visa fraud. The charges seek forfeiture of assets tied to the alleged crimes, or substitute property if the original assets cannot be recovered.
According to the complaint, Homeland Security Investigations in Saipan received tips in August 2024 from independent sources, including USCIS, about suspicious immigration filings.
“Specifically, approximately 242 immigration benefit applications for Employment Authorization Documents under the same eligibility category (C16) were submitted listing the same Saipan mailing address,” the complaint stated.
Database checks linked the address to Martin, who listed his residence as Adobu Drive in Koblerville. Records show Martin, a Philippine national, first entered the United States (Saipan) on Sept. 10, 2000.
Investigators said Martin submitted Form I-765 and Form I-485 on June 25, 2023, using the same mailing address. USCIS issued him an EAD while his I-485 remained pending.
A review of the application revealed Martin selected the C16 category despite border-crossing records and his own statements confirming he had not been continuously present in the United States since before 1972.
Additional filings in March 2024 linked to Martin’s address raised further concerns, investigators said.
On Oct. 31, Martin pleaded not guilty. A jury trial is scheduled for Jan. 6, 2026, at 10 a.m.
Bryan Manabat was a liberal arts student of Northern Marianas College where he also studied criminal justice. He is the recipient of the NMI Humanities Award as an Outstanding Teacher (Non-Classroom) in 2013, and has worked for the CNMI Motheread/Fatheread Literacy Program as lead facilitator.
