Calif. pastor pleads not guilty to helping foreigners fraudulently obtain student visas

Calif. pastor pleads not guilty to visa fraud

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A California pastor has pleaded not guilty to helping foreigners fraudulently obtain student visas for a university where prosecutors say many never attended class.

Samuel Chai Cho Oh entered the plea in federal court in Santa Ana on Tuesday. The Korea native is charged with 10 counts of visa fraud and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions with criminally derived funds.

Prosecutors accuse Oh of helping to fraudulently obtain visas for foreign students who never took classes at California Union University in Fullerton, which he owns. They say he charged $600 to $10,000 to file paperwork on their behalf.

Trial is scheduled for March 9.