Cab Driver Rapist Gurmeet Singh Loses US Citizenship After 2011 Attack

Gurmeet Singh, convicted of kidnapping and raping a passenger at knifepoint in 2011, has been stripped of his US citizenship by a federal court.

Convicted Cab Driver Loses Citizenship He Obtained by Concealing Rape

An India-born cab driver serving a 20-year prison sentence for kidnapping and raping a female passenger at knifepoint has been stripped of his US citizenship, the Justice Department confirmed Monday, NY Post Metro reports.

Gurmeet Singh, 55, was convicted in 2014 of the violent sexual assault of a young woman he picked up in Williamsburg in May 2011. The victim fell asleep during the ride to her East Village apartment. According to a victim impact statement read by prosecutors at sentencing, she woke up to find Singh on top of her with a knife pressed to her throat, asking whether she wanted to live.

Singh bound, gagged, and blindfolded the woman, removed her clothing, and raped her. She ultimately fled his taxi on foot and flagged down passersby for help.

Weeks after the assault, Singh filed his naturalization application — concealing the attack throughout the entire proceedings. He was granted US citizenship on Oct. 19, 2011, approximately five months after the rape.

"Singh unlawfully obtained the privileges of U.S. citizenship by concealing horrible criminal acts," said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department's Civil Division. "The Department will continue to protect the integrity of the citizenship process and hold accountable those who defraud our immigration system."

Attorney General Todd Blanche was more direct: "American citizenship is not a shield for criminals. Gurmeet Singh, a convicted rapist from India, is no longer a U.S. citizen."

Singh first entered the United States in February 1992 on a six-month temporary visitor visa. He remained in the country without authorization for years before a family visa petition allowed him to obtain permanent residency in June 2000.

He is currently held at Shawangunk Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Wallkill, New York — the same institution that houses "Son of Sam" killer David Berkowitz. His scheduled release date is February 2029.

A federal order issued last week by Brooklyn judge Nicholas Garaufis gives Singh until September 16 to surrender his citizenship documents, including his naturalization certificate and US passport. At the time of his release, the Department of Homeland Security will make the final determination on deportation.

"This Department took this case across the finish line, and we will continue to move expeditiously on denaturalization referrals," Blanche added. "Fraudulently obtained citizenship will not protect criminals from justice."

Source: NY Post Metro