Day after Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced a freeze on H-1B hiring in state agencies and universities, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton ordered an investigation into three North Texas businesses that hired H-1Bs, asking them to submit documents identifying all their employees and what they do. These three companies are those which were called 'sham' by Texas journalist Sara Gonzales after she went to the official address of one of these companies and found an empty site. Another site visit led Gonzales to the private property of an Indian-origin man whose name was mentioned in the official record as the visa contact person.
Paxton said he came across the reports that indicated that these businesses allegedly engaged in illegal activity to scam the H-1B visa program by setting up sham companies featuring websites advertising nonexistent products or services to Texas consumers only to sponsor H-1B visas. "Any criminal who attempts to scam the H-1B visa program and use 'ghost offices' or other fraudulent ploys should be prepared to face the full force of the law," the AG said.
