PUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 19-1360 MOKORYA COSMAS WAMBURA, Petitioner, v. WILLIAM P. BARR, Attorney General, Respondent. On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. Argued: September 11, 2020 Decided: November 13, 2020 Before HARRIS, RICHARDSON, and QUATTLEBAUM, Circuit Judges. Petition for review granted in part, denied in part and remanded by published opinion. Judge Quattlebaum wrote the opinion, in which Judge Richardson joined. Judge Harris wrote a concurring opinion. ARGUED: Jeffrey A. Clair, LAW OFFICES OF JEFFREY CLAIR, Washington, D.C., for Petitioner. Gregory A. Pennington, Jr., UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. ON BRIEF: Joseph H. Hunt, Assistant Attorney General, Carl McIntyre, Assistant Director, Office of Immigration Litigation, Civil Division, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. QUATTLEBAUM, Circuit Judge: In this appeal, we are presented with two questions related to aliens seeking protection under the United States immigration laws. First, once the requirements for removability are met, does the government have the burden to prove that the amount of loss caused by the alien’s fraud conviction is $10,000 or more for purposes of an alien’s eligibility for asylum and withholding of removal under the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”), and for protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”)? Second, does 8 U.S.C. § 1229a(c)(4)(B) require an immigration judge (“IJ”) to: (1) provide an alien with advanced notice of the need to offer corroborating evidence, and (2) make a finding as to whether such corroborating evidence was reasonably available if the needed corroborating evidence was not provided? As to the first question, we conclude the burden of proof lies not with the government, but with the alien seeking relief from removal. As to the second, we conclude that advanced notice is not required, but that the IJ must make a finding on the availability of corroborating evidence as described below. Therefore, for the following reasons, we grant in part and deny in part the petition for review, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. I. Mokorya Cosmas Wambura (“Wambura”) is a native and citizen of Tanzania. He was admitted lawfully to the United States on a student visa and later became a lawful permanent resident in 2005. Approximately eight years later, Wambura was charged with 2 various crimes related to a conspiracy to fraudulently secure a residential mortgage loan and obtain federally subsidized rent using a stolen identity. Under this scheme, Wambura secured a mortgage in the amount of $375,000, and collected $29,186 in rent. Wambura ultimately pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. He was sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered to pay $434,867.65 in restitution. Under the INA, a lawful permanent resident can be removed if convicted of certain crimes. 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2). After Wambura completed his sentence, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) commenced removal proceedings against him based on his prior convictions. ...
Original document
Source: All recent Immigration Decisions In All the U.S. Courts of Appeals