The immigrants allegedly paid as much as $10,000, while the U.S. citizens were offered $2,000 or $2,500, U.S. Attorney Robert O'Neill said.
Officials said the couples were ''coached'' on how to pass immigration checks with fake answers, and in some cases didn't even share a common language with their purported spouse.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were tipped off in many instances by officers from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, who review each citizenship-conferring marriage to ensure legitimacy.
At least one of the businesses kept a standing wedding showroom in its office, complete with a prop cake, an assortment of 10 to 15 wedding dresses and table settings never dirtied with dinner or drink.
SOPHISTICATED SCHEME
''What we've seen in the past generally is that a person will meet someone, that person might be desperate for some money, willingly engage in a sham marriage and then they go their own ways,'' O'Neill said. ``Here, you can see this was much more sophisticated. They incorporated businesses, they obviously sought out people, people came in.''
Robert Weber, special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Tampa, characterized the fraudulent marriages as a threat to national security.
SEEKING FAST BUCK
''[The Americans] did not know their motives, they did not know their intent, they didn't know where they were coming from -- in this case from 11 different nationalities,'' Weber said. ``They did it for financial gain; they were willing to put our national security and domestic public safety at risk.''
Officials said some of the immigrants had criminal records, ranging from burglary to battery, drug offenses, domestic violence and even aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. They were primarily from Central America and South America, though at least one of the immigrants was from Morocco.
The four companies that allegedly arranged the marriages were incorporated as immigration assistance services. They were: All Kind Services, A-3 Services, American Solutions and Services -- all based in the Orlando area -- and Power of Attorney, based in Daytona Beach. Officials said more arrests were expected.
Those arrested were from Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Sarasota, Cocoa Beach and Fort Myers.
Weber warned that ICE is stepping up enforcement of marriage fraud. The agency investigated more than 5,200 such cases in 2006 and first half of 2007, up from about 2,300 in 2004.
