US federal prosecutors have charged 11 people over an alleged decade-long marriage fraud network involving more than 1,000 sham unions. Authorities say the scheme helped Chinese nationals seek green cards through fake marriages, making it a significant alleged abuse of the US immigration system.

The Justice Department announced the charges in the Southern District of New York. Prosecutors allege Chinese participants were charged up to $100,000 to take part in fraudulent marriages, although the article text provided does not specify the individual charges or the network’s total proceeds.