VZCZCXRO1779
RR RUEHLA
DE RUEHYE #0126/01 0541304
ZNY EEEEE ZZH
R 231304Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY YEREVAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8695
RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHDC
RUEPICA/USCIS WASHINGTON DC
INFO RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW 1599
RUEHFT/AMCONSUL FRANKFURT 1871
RUEHLA/HQ CIS IAO WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS E F T O SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 000126 
 
SENSITIVE NOFORN 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR CA/VO/F/P (MEEARL) AND CA/FPP (RSBILLINGS) 
USCIS FOR ASYLUM BRANCH (KTURO AND KMACK) 
MOSCOW FOR USCIS (SSINCLAIR-SMITH) 
FRANKFURT FOR RCO (KBROUGHAM) AND ICE (GSPINDEL) 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/23/2018 
TAGS: CVIS KFRD PHUM PREF AM
SUBJECT: EVIDENCE OF POSSIBLE FRAUDULENT ASYLUM CLAIM - 
HOVHANNISYAN, JEMMA DOB 05 JAN 1957, A98824551 
 
THIS CABLE CONTAINS MATERIAL THAT IS SENSITIVE BUT 
UNCLASSIFIED.  PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. 
 
¶1. (SBU/NF) Summary: Evidence has come to light during a Visa 
92 following-to-join interview that suggests Ms. Jemma 
HOVHANNISYAN, Alien Registration Number 98824551 submitted a 
fraudulent claim for asylum.  As per 9 FAM Appendix O, 
1207.2-5(A), Post is reporting these details to CA/VO/F/P, 
CA/FPP and USCIS.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU/NF) Armenian citizen Ms. Jemma HOVHANNISYAN entered 
the U.S. in B2 status on 18OCT2004 and claimed asylum on 
26JUN2005.  The basis for her claim to asylum was 
persecution, threats and physical abuse she and her family 
members received as a result of attending political rallies 
and her attempts to organize a women's movement in Armenia. 
According to her I-589 statement, her son was arrested, 
beaten in detention, and forced out of school for his 
political activities (he fled to the United States in 2001). 
As a result of the family's political activities, police 
broke into her family home twice on 25JAN2001 and 09OCT2004 
and beat her and her husband (NOTE: In 2001 her son was also 
beaten).  USCIS granted Jemma HOVHANNISYAN asylum on 
19SEP2007. 
 
¶3. (SBU/NF) On 04FEB2009, Post interviewed Ms. HOVHANNISYAN's 
husband Avetik Hovhannisyan for Visas 92 following-to-join 
status.  As part of routine preparation for the interview, 
the consular officer reviewed the principal applicant's case 
file including Ms. Hovhannisyan's I-589 application for 
asylum and her previous non-immigrant visa application. 
During his interview, the consular officer asked Mr. 
Hovhannisyan about his life in Armenia and if he had ever 
experienced any persecutions or beatings while living in 
Armenia.  Mr. Hovhannisyan vowed and signed a sworn statement 
that he had been beaten twice in the period 1996 - 2000 
(NOTE: but not on the dates listed in his wife's I-589 
statement), and that other than these two times he had never 
been beaten.  As is customary for these interviews, the 
applicant was interviewed with an Armenian-English translator 
present, although the interviewing consular officer also 
speaks Armenian.  The Armenian-English translator and 
consular officer both noted the great difficulty Mr. 
Hovhannisyan had trying to remember the dates of his 
beatings, and the translator noted that Mr. Hovhannisyan was 
swearing to himself under his breath.  Further, Post notes 
that at the time of the petitioner Ms. Hovhannisyan's 
08SEP2004 non-immigrant visa application, the petitioner then 
stated she had no contact with her self-described "black 
sheep" son Artak Hovhannisyan, who went to the United States 
on a tourist visa in 2001 and remained.  According to Mr. 
Hovhannisyan's I-590 form, his wife and "black sheep" son are 
now living together in Las Vegas, NV. Avetik Hovhannisyan's 
sworn statement has been scanned into the NIV record for Mr. 
Hovhannisyan's YY transportation foil and can be accessed 
through the Consular Consolidated Database (CCD). 
 
¶4. (SBU/NF) Given the conflicting information provided by 
Avetik Hovhannisyan, Post suspects that Jemma Hovhannisyan's 
original claim for asylum was fraudulent.  Ms. Hovhannisyan 
stated in her I-589 Asylum Application that her family was 
violently beaten in 2001 and 2004; her husband, however, 
stated these beatings occurred sometime between 1996 and 
2000, and showed clear frustration when he could not remember 
the 'correct' dates.  Post finds it highly suspect that a 
person, violently beaten by the police in his own home, would 
fail to remember the year the beatings of himself and his 
wife (the petitioner) occurred.  Post also submits that Ms. 
Hovhannisyan appears to have lied on her non-immigrant visa 
application about her "black sheep" son, as the two are now 
living together in the United States.  As a result of these 
inconsistencies, Post concludes that Ms. Hovhannisyan's I-589 
and 2004 non-immigrant visa application include 
disinformation.  Post believes this disinformation 
necessarily casts doubts on the rest of the information of 
record in this case. 
 
¶5. (SBU/NF) To preserve the principal applicant's 
confidentiality, the questions put to Avetik Hovhannisyan 
were all factual questions to confirm information for the 
record.  The consular officer's questioning was such that he 
never stated that Ms. Jemma Hovhannisyan had received asylum 
or intimated that one reason for her departure from Armenia 
 
YEREVAN 00000126  002 OF 002 
 
 
was that Ms. Hovhannisyan had difficulties in Armenia. 
Nonetheless, the interview showed that Avetik Hovhannisyan 
appeared to be aware that his wife received asylum status in 
the U.S.  Avetik Hovhannisyan was interviewed in a private 
room where no one could overhear the conversation. 
 
¶6. (SBU/NF) Post will issue Mr. Hovhannisyan his YY 
transportation foil shortly as he qualifies for Visa 92 
following-to-join status in all other respects.  The 
applicant's information is as follows - Mr. Avetik 
Hovhannisyan, DOB 31 JAN 1955, Alien Registration Number 88 
867 611.  Mr Hovhannisyan,s intended address in the United 
States is c/o of the petitioner Ms. Jemma Hovhannisyan at 
3674 Great Bear St; Las Vegas, NV 89147. 
 
¶7. (U) Post point of contact is IV Unit Chief, Vice Consul 
Brian T. Smith, smithbt@state.gov. 
YOVANOVITCH