Iraqi man sentenced in visa fraud case

An Iraqi man who lied about working as a translator for the U.S. Army in order to obtain a visa has been ordered to serve two years in federal prison.

U.S. Attorney Tom Beall said Goran Sabah Ghafour, 35, was sentenced Wednesday. He pleaded guilty to one count of visa fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

In his plea, Ghafour admitted to forging a letter from an Army officer claiming he worked as a translator so he could apply for a visa under a program that allows Iraqi nationals who worked for or on behalf of the U.S. government to qualify for them. The officer, however, did not know Ghafour and did not give him permission to write the letter, Beall said.

Ghafour lived in Lawrence while he was a student of the University of Kansas, where he earned master’s and doctoral degrees in journalism. His attorney, in court documents, contended Ghafour had worked for U.S. entities in Iraq, including translating for military personnel at conferences and meetings, “just not directly for the U.S. government.”

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 1:11 PM with the headline "Iraqi man sentenced in visa fraud case."