The Department of Justice took action to revoke the citizenship of a court-martialed former Marine for previous alleged sexual misconduct involving a minor.
Nicholas Eshun, originally from Ghana, immigrated to the United States in 2011 and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He became a citizen of the country in 2013 through the use of a provision that expedited U.S. naturalization process for those who enlisted in the military, according to the DOJ. While on a deployment two years later, Eshun was busted for exchanging inappropriate and “lewd” messages with “someone whom he believed to be a fourteen-year-old girl” and “attempting to sexually abuse her.”
“As alleged, this defendant betrayed the uniform, abused the trust of this nation, and targeted [someone] who he believed was a child,” said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. “Under strong leadership, this Department is using every lawful tool to protect the American people and to ensure that citizenship is not a shield for criminals who never deserved it in the first place.”
The minor Eshun believed he was texting was, instead, an undercover Naval Criminal Investigative Service officer. He was court-martialed and convicted for his crimes, according to the DOJ. In May 2016, he was dishonorably discharged from the USMC. Since he failed to meet the minimum five-year service requirement to maintain his U.S. citizenship, Eshun was “subject to denaturalization” due to a
“provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act that applies to servicemembers who naturalize through military service but who are dishonorably discharged without serving honorably for at least five years.”
Blanche emphasized that citizenship is a privilege, not a right. And that if someone immigrated to the country and broke laws, and committed “heinous crimes,” that person would be “held accountable.”
“If you commit heinous crimes, you will be held accountable. This is how we make America safe again,” Blanche added.
Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Civil Division Brett A. Shumate, echoed those sentiments.
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“Today’s denaturalization against Nicholas Eshun, a court-martialed sex offender, demonstrates the United States’ commitment to using every tool available under the law to pursue those who obtain their U.S. citizenship unlawfully,” said Shumate.
“Thanks to the intrepid investigators of NCIS, we now know the danger this man poses to this country. He is no longer serving as a Marine,” Shumate added. “There is no lawful basis for him to keep the citizenship he secured as one.”