U.S. revoking Cuban woman's citizenship over casino fraud

Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres, a 40-year-old Cuban resident of Miami, is being pursued by the United States Department of Justice to have her citizenship revoked. According to the case filed in the Southern District of Florida, she is charged with money laundering from a multi-million dollar scam that targeted a tribal casino in Florida.

Acosta Torres allegedly got her citizenship falsely by hiding her participation in a seven-year criminal plot, according to the denaturalization request.

The case began in January 2011 when Johander Jorrin Melhen, the husband of Acosta Torres and a worker at the Miccosukee Resort & Gaming in Miami-Dade, started manipulating slot machines with accomplices to create fictitious credit vouchers that they subsequently traded for cash.

According to the court filing, "Jorrin and his accomplices manipulated the slot machines to generate false and fraudulent credit vouchers, which were then presented to the casino in exchange for cash." Up to October 2018, the plan embezzled up to $5.3 million from the casino.

Acosta Torres created bank accounts at JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America to deposit the pilfered money while her husband committed the fraud. By arranging deposits to stay under $10,000 per account in a single day, she was able to evade federal financial reporting requirements.

At least $147,970 in laundered funds were used to buy three cars, a Miami house, and pre-paid college plans for their kids.

Acosta Torres requested for naturalization in August 2015 while the conspiracy was still in progress, and three months later he was granted it. She denied any criminal behavior during her sworn interview and the completion of necessary forms.

Officials underline that in her naturalization application, signed under penalty of perjury, the accused marked 'No' in response to questions related to having ever committed, assisted in committing, or attempted to commit a crime or offense for which she was not arrested?

According to the civil case, Acosta Torres applied for naturalization but failed to disclose her prior criminal conduct in her application.

Authorities formally accused her of money laundering conspiracy on July 16, 2019. She entered a guilty plea on January 30, 2020, and acknowledged that she had assisted in the laundering of at least $147,970 while being aware that the funds were stolen. She was given a six-month prison sentence, 36 months of supervised release, and a full restitution order.

According to the case, Acosta Torres purposefully distorted information throughout the naturalization process, failed to truthfully demonstrate that she was a person of good moral character, and gave false testimony regarding her criminal history. The government asked the court to order Acosta Torres to turn over her passport and other citizenship documentation within ten days.

In summary, Acosta Torres' spouse and associates defrauded the casino of millions of dollars by manipulating slot machines to create fictitious credit vouchers that were subsequently traded for cash. She created bank accounts to launder the pilfered funds, arranging deposits to keep below federal reporting requirements in order to evade detection. She was sentenced to six months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and restitution. Furthermore, because of her false naturalization, her citizenship is being canceled and she is expected to be deported.

This case is part of the biggest denaturalization campaign in federal government history, which has also affected other Cubans, such as Yosmaikel Rodríguez Pérez, who is facing denaturalization proceedings this month for nearly $887,000 in fraud, and Mirelys Cabrera Díaz, whose citizenship was revoked in March 2026 for Medicare fraud.

Source:

“U.S. Moves Forward with Revocation of Cuban Woman's Citizenship Due to Casino Heist: Key Details” , Aaron Delgado, cubaheadlines.com, July 27, 2026.