Indian-Origin Taxi Driver Gurmeet Singh Loses US Citizenship After Rape Conviction

An Indian-origin former taxi driver has been stripped of his US citizenship after a federal court revoked his naturalisation following his conviction for raping and kidnapping a female passenger in New York. The US Department of Justice said Gurmeet Singh, 55, obtained American citizenship in October 2011 but had failed to disclose the serious criminal conduct that occurred just months earlier. A federal court in the Eastern District of New York issued an order on August 26, 2026, formally revoking his naturalisation.

Singh arrived in the United States in February 1992 on a visitor visa. He later remained in the country and eventually became a lawful permanent resident in June 2000 through a family-based immigration petition. According to the Justice Department, Singh was working as a taxi driver in New York when the incident occurred on May 6, 2011. Authorities said he picked up a female passenger who fell asleep during the ride. The passenger later woke up to find Singh attacking her with a knife. She was restrained and sexually assaulted before managing to escape from the vehicle and seek help.

Singh was later arrested and prosecuted in New York. He was convicted of first-degree rape and second-degree kidnapping as a sexually motivated felony and received a 20-year prison sentence. The timing of the crime became significant in the subsequent citizenship case. Singh applied for naturalisation shortly after the assault and became a US citizen on October 19, 2011. Federal authorities later alleged that he concealed the 2011 offences and provided misleading information during the naturalisation process.

The Justice Department filed a denaturalisation lawsuit against Singh in February 2026, arguing that his citizenship had been unlawfully obtained because he had concealed material information from immigration authorities. The federal court ultimately agreed with the government's position and revoked his naturalisation. The decision means Singh is no longer a US citizen. However, the ruling does not cancel his criminal conviction or his 20-year prison sentence. He remains incarcerated in New York and is expected to complete his sentence in 2029, according to reports.

After his imprisonment ends, the loss of citizenship could also have immigration consequences. Because he is no longer a naturalised US citizen, immigration authorities may determine what legal status, if any, he is entitled to maintain in the United States and whether removal proceedings are appropriate. The case also highlights the importance of truthful disclosure during the US naturalisation process. Federal law allows the government to seek denaturalisation in certain circumstances when citizenship was obtained illegally or through concealment or material misrepresentation.

The Justice Department has increasingly highlighted denaturalisation cases involving allegations that applicants concealed significant information during the citizenship process. Singh's case is notable because the crime occurred only months before he became a US citizen and the government later successfully challenged the validity of that naturalisation.

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