JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two local Navy sailors are facing federal charges in a marriage fraud scheme, according to court documents filed recently. One sailor has pleaded guilty, and authorities say the case involves multiple conspirators.
A woman, who identified herself only as M, contacted News4JAX after the initial report.
Our previous story mentioned two women who were not named. M tells News4JAX that she had a connection to a man who was also a sailor and involved in the scheme, and eventually turned him in.
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“They got married in August 2024,” M said. “We started talking in September or October of that same year.”
M said she dated the sailor until May 2025. During their relationship, she noticed he was messaging other women and decided to look into his past.
“I found out he was married to a woman who lives in New York,” she said. “Once I found out, I tried looking to see if I could find her. I couldn’t find her at all. So once I couldn’t find her, I tried digging more about him. Eventually, that’s when I found out about her basically using him for a green card.”
When M confronted the sailor with a copy of the marriage certificate, he admitted the truth.
“I sent him the marriage certificate, and he was like, ‘How’d you find this? I can find anything about anybody,’” she said.
After learning the truth, M said she went to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to report what she knew.
“I told them, ‘Hey, if you need text messages, if you need anything, I will provide it,’” she said. “We actually spoke to them, went into the office, and gave them information about everything that went on.”
Court documents confirm that the sailor married a Chinese national living in New York on Aug. 31, 2024. The marriage took place in Jacksonville.
Reflecting on her experience, M said she hopes others learn from her story.
“If anybody is in a relationship or trying to get in a relationship, they should automatically look people up before they get into the relationship with them because you never know,” she said. “It’s just mind-blowing.”
The investigation into the marriage fraud scheme is ongoing, and authorities have not released the names of all involved conspirators.