The U.S. government has busted and charged 11 Chinese nationals in crackdown on decade-long fake marriages to obtain green cards.

The U.S. Department of Justice, in a statement on Wednesday, stated “A two-count indictment was unsealed charging 11 individuals with conspiring, over the course of more than a decade, to orchestrate more than 1,000 sham marriages to fraudulently obtain immigration status for foreign nationals, primarily citizens of the People’s Republic of China.”

The U.S. noted that investigations showed some individuals paid up to $100,000 per sham marriage to game the immigration process and obtain U.S. green card, while their American accomplices were paid as much as $30,000 to enter into fake marriages with immigrants seeking to obtain U.S. green card.

The DoJ stated, “Foreign nationals paid facilitators as much as approximately $100,000 for a sham marriage and assistance obtaining lawful permanent resident status. Facilitators, in turn, allegedly paid participating U.S. citizens up to about $30,000 — generally in installments tied to milestones in the Green Card application process — and paid recruiters commissions of as much as approximately $5,000 for each citizen recruited. In total, the defendants and their co-conspirators recruited hundreds of U.S. citizens to enter into sham marriages.”

The chinese nationals arrested in the fake marriage for green card networks include Amy Cheng, 72, of Brooklyn, New York, Xiao Mei Chan, 64, of Queens, New York, Christine Lu, 52, of Queens, Jing Yan Ye, 43, of Staten Island, New York.

Others are Xiao Yan Chen, 48, of Brooklyn, Gang Zheng, 61, of Queens, Anthony Cheng, 47, Staten Island, Michelle Duenas, 35, of Staten Island, Angela Duenas, 26, of Staten Island, Sigrid Cetino, 32, of Peekskill, New York, and Erika Johnson, 43, of Ossining, New York.

Attorney General Todd Blanche, in a press conference on Wednesday, said “This scheme was not a quick, fly-by-night operation but rather a years-long, multibillion-dollar cottage industry to criminally assist people who would not, or legally could not, otherwise become citizens of the United States.”

Mr Blanche added, “This Department of Justice is rooting out fraud everywhere — including in our immigration system. The individuals who were arrested today allegedly orchestrated elaborate schemes to illegally obtain citizenship for foreign nationals through sham marriages. Schemes like this are a deliberate affront to the United States and our laws and will not be tolerated under the Trump Administration.”

U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York said, “Today’s arrests have dismantled a central component of one of the largest marriage fraud schemes charged in United States history. As this prosecution shows, we and our law enforcement partners will relentlessly pursue those seeking to corrupt and exploit our nation’s lawful immigration system.”

He added, “The defendants and their co-conspirators allegedly operated a nationwide and international, multimillion-dollar marriage fraud scheme, using participants to abuse United States immigration laws for their own profit.”

Also, in crackdown on immigration, President Donald Trump’s government revoked at least 600 visas linked to birth tourism.