Man admits using alias for immigration status

A Pakistani national in Florence has pleaded guilty to filing false statements to gain entry and citizenship, U.S. Attorney W. Walter Wilkins said in a press release.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas E. Rogers III, accepted the plea from 29-year-old Sohail Feroz Ali Dossani, also known as Sohail Muhammad Jamal, and sentence him after reviewing presentence report by the U.S. Probation Office. Dossani faces a $1,000 fine and six months in prison.

On June 12, 2008,  someone told authorities he’d found two Pakistani passports bearing photographs of the same person but with different names. An investigation revealed that Dossani was a Pakistani citizen when he entered the United States using the assumed name of Sohail Jamal. He also used the name Jamal to obtain his permanent residency in the United States and tried to become a naturalized citizen using the false name by filling out and submitting immigration applications to the Citizenship and Immigration Services. Dossani admitted to using the false name during his October 2008 naturalization interview. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney William E. Day II of the Florence office handled the case, which was investigated by the FBI, State Law Enforcement Division, the Florence County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.