U.S. Moves Forward with Revocation of Cuban Woman's Citizenship Due to Casino Heist: Key Details

The U.S. Department of Justice is progressing with efforts to revoke the citizenship of Milagros Marileisis Acosta Torres, a 40-year-old Cuban resident of Miami. She stands accused of laundering money from a multi-million dollar fraud targeting a tribal casino in Florida, as per the civil lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Florida.

This denaturalization request, initiated during the Trump administration, claims that Acosta Torres fraudulently obtained her citizenship by concealing her involvement in a criminal scheme that spanned seven years.

The Miccosukee Casino Fraud

The case traces back to January 2011, when Acosta Torres' husband, Johander Jorrin Melhen, an employee at the Miccosukee Resort & Gaming in Miami-Dade, began manipulating slot machines with accomplices to produce fake credit vouchers, which they then exchanged for cash.

According to the court document, "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."

The scheme siphoned off as much as $5.3 million from the casino and continued until October 2018.

Acosta Torres' Role in Money Laundering

While her husband carried out the fraud, Acosta Torres opened bank accounts at JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America to deposit the stolen cash, structuring deposits to stay under $10,000 per account in a single day, thereby avoiding federal financial reporting requirements.

The court filing notes that "the defendant opened these accounts with the intent to launder cash from the computer fraud Jorrin brought home from the Miccosukee Casino. Between 2011 and 2014, the defendant deposited at least $39,863 in cash in one account and $16,830 in another."

The laundered money—at least $147,970—was used to purchase a Miami home, three vehicles, and prepaid college plans for their children.

Fraudulent Naturalization

In August 2015, while the conspiracy was still active, Acosta Torres applied for naturalization and received it three months later.

During both the N-400 form process and her sworn interview, she denied any criminal activity.

Officials highlight that "in her naturalization application, signed under penalty of perjury, the accused marked 'No' in response to question 22 in Part 11, which asked: 'Have you ever committed, assisted in committing, or attempted to commit a crime or offense for which you were not arrested?'"

The civil lawsuit argues that Acosta Torres "applied for naturalization but failed to disclose her prior criminal conduct in her application."

Conviction and Denaturalization Demand

On July 16, 2019, authorities formally charged her with conspiracy to commit money laundering. On January 30, 2020, she pleaded guilty and admitted to knowingly helping launder at least $147,970, aware that the money was stolen.

She was sentenced to six months in prison, 36 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $147,970 in restitution.

The lawsuit claims Acosta Torres "failed to demonstrate that she was a person of good moral character," falsely testified about her crime, and deliberately misrepresented information during the naturalization process.

The Trump administration requested that the court compel Acosta Torres to surrender proof of her citizenship, including her passport, within ten days.

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