PHILADELPHIA — Amara Dukuly, a former immigration officer employed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for accepting bribes to alter immigration files. United States District Judge John Milton Younge imposed the sentence, which also included a $6,000 fine, $6,000 in restitution, and three years of supervised release.

Dukuly pleaded guilty in March to aiding and abetting the bribery of a public official. The 44-year-old resident of Woodlyn, Pennsylvania, had solicited bribes from individuals between approximately 2015 and 2025 in exchange for promises to help them with their immigration status. On April 4, 2025, he accepted a $6,000 bribe to remove 'terrorist' references from an individual's immigration file.

The case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and the FBI. Dukuly was arrested in June 2025 and indicted in July 2025. Court documents identified him as a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Iraq War.

Timeline

On April 4, 2025, Dukuly accepted a $6,000 bribe to remove 'terrorist' references from an individual's immigration file. Dukuly was arrested in June 2025. Dukuly was indicted in July 2025. Dukuly was a former immigration officer employed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Dukuly was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison. Dukuly must pay $6,000 in restitution.

What's New

Later reporting revealed that Dukuly had been under investigation by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General since 2017 for alleged misconduct related to his role as an immigration officer. Additional context shows Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) conducted a 2021 investigation into a similar case involving an USCIS employee who accepted bribes to alter immigration records, resulting in a 14-month prison sentence and $5,000 in fines. Records indicate Dukuly had financial debt as of March 2025, according to TransUnion records, which may have contributed to his decision to solicit bribes.

Further details emerged regarding earlier allegations against Dukuly. He was involved in a civil complaint in 2016 where a woman claimed he promised to stop her husband’s immigration appeal in exchange for $6,000, which led to an FBI investigation starting in 2017. In 2016, a civil complaint was filed against Dukuly after a woman claimed he solicited $6,000 to stop the appeal process for her husband’s immigration case.

Data from 2025 indicated the U.S. Sentencing Commission reported that the average sentence for federal bribery convictions related to immigration fraud was 14.5 months, slightly below Dukuly’s 12-month sentence, suggesting a relatively lenient outcome given the nature of the crime. Credit reports showed Dukuly had a history of financial distress, with reports showing he was in debt as of March 2025 and was 30 to 59 days behind on mortgage payments. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has a documented history of investigating immigration fraud, with over 1,200 investigations initiated in 2022 alone, many of which involved public officials misusing their positions for personal gain. Primary source: ussc.gov

Why It Matters

This sentencing shows ongoing efforts to root out corruption within federal immigration agencies. The Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General has a dedicated unit focused on corruption within immigration agencies, which has led to over 50 prosecutions since 2010, including cases involving USCIS employees. The OIG has previously investigated multiple cases of corruption involving USCIS employees, including one in 2019 where an officer was convicted for accepting bribes to expedite visa applications.

Dukuly’s case fits a broader pattern of misconduct investigated by federal authorities. The involvement of multiple agencies, including the FBI and HSI, reflects the complexity of detecting and prosecuting such internal breaches of trust.