Rohan Mangroo v. U.S. Attorney General

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedMarch 14, 2025
Docket23-13811
StatusUnpublished

This text of Rohan Mangroo v. U.S. Attorney General (Rohan Mangroo v. U.S. Attorney General) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rohan Mangroo v. U.S. Attorney General, (11th Cir. 2025).

Opinion

USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 1 of 19

[DO NOT PUBLISH] In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit

____________________

No. 22-11486 Non-Argument Calendar ____________________

ROHAN MANGROO, Petitioner, versus U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL,

Respondent.

Petitions for Review of a Decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals Agency No. A089-570-503 ____________________ USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 2 of 19

2 Opinion of the Court 22-11486

No. 23-13811 Non-Argument Calendar ____________________

Petitions for Review of a Decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals Agency No. A089-570-503 ____________________

Before BRANCH, ANDERSON, and HULL, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: In this consolidated appeal, Rohan Mangroo petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) decisions (1) affirming the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) denial of Mangroo’s USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 3 of 19

22-11486 Opinion of the Court 3

request for a discretionary waiver of inadmissibility under Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”) § 237(a)(1)(H), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(1)(H), and (2) dismissing Mangroo’s subsequent motion for reconsideration as untimely. After review, we dismiss in part and deny in part Mangroo’s petitions. I. BACKGROUND FACTS Mangroo is a native and citizen of Trinidad and Tobago. In April 1999, Mangroo (at age 34) entered the United States as a non- immigrant visitor and then overstayed his visa. A. Adjustment of Status Based on Fraudulent Marriage On October 1, 2002, Mangroo married Pamela Meagher, a U.S. citizen. Meagher was the mother of Mangroo’s then-girlfriend Sharon Mackoon. Mangroo and Mackoon, who still resided in Trinidad and Tobago, already had an eleven-year-old daughter, Melissa, who also resided in Trinidad and Tobago. The marriage to Meagher was a sham. In 2006, based on his sham marriage to Meagher, Mangroo sought adjustment of status, and on March 14, 2007, he became a lawful permanent resident and obtained a “green card.” After Mangroo obtained his immigration benefits, Mangroo and Meagher divorced in November 2007. B. Application for Citizenship and Admission of Fraud In May 2012, Mangroo applied for naturalization to be a U.S. citizen. After interviewing Mangroo, a United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) officer determined that a USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 4 of 19

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decision could not be made on Mangroo’s application without further investigation. On July 23, 2013, another USCIS officer visited Mangroo at his home. Upon questioning, Mangroo admitted to the USCIS officer that his prior marriage to Meagher was fraudulent. In two separate affidavits, Mangroo averred that he had married Meagher only to obtain valid immigration status so he could support his family. USCIS recommended Mangroo’s removal. C. Notice to Appear and Master Calendar Hearing On October 27, 2014 the Department of Homeland Security served Mangroo with a Notice to Appear (“NTA”). The NTA charged Mangroo, inter alia, with removability under INA § 212(a)(6)(C)(i), 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(C)(i), as an alien who sought to procure entry or status by means of fraud or willful misrepresentation. At a December 2, 2015 master calendar hearing before an IJ, Mangroo conceded his removability and indicated he planned to apply for a waiver of inadmissibility under INA § 237(a)(1)(H), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(1)(H). A § 237(a)(1)(H) waiver is discretionary and specifically for certain aliens who have been found inadmissible due to fraud under § 212(a)(6)(C)(i). See 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(1)(H). During the master calendar hearing, the IJ instructed Mangroo’s counsel to request the § 237(a)(1)(H) waiver on Form I-601. When Mangroo’s counsel questioned whether the form was needed, the IJ stated that Mangroo was “seeking a waiver of admissibility and the I-601 operates to waive that ground of USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 5 of 19

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inadmissibility before this Court.” Mangroo’s counsel responded, “That’s fine. We’ll file it, Your Honor.” At the IJ’s urging, Mangroo’s counsel also indicated that Mangroo would file an I-130 visa petition based on his relationship with his adult daughter, who is a U.S. citizen. On December 9, 2015, Mangroo married Mackoon. As directed, Mangroo filed a Form I-601 Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility that requested a § 237(a)(1)(H) waiver, signed April 28, 2017. But Mangroo did not file the promised I-130 visa petition based on his relationship to his adult daughter. D. Removal Hearing At his May 2, 2019 removal hearing, Mangroo testified that he is married to Sharon Mackoon, with whom he has two daughters—Melissa who was 31 years old and Mikayla, who was 9 years old—and that both daughters are U.S. citizens. Mangroo explained that he entered the United States on a B-2 visa (in 1999) to look for work to support his then-girlfriend Mackoon and their daughter Melissa, who remained in Trinidad and Tobago. When Mangroo could not find an employer to sponsor him, he became desperate to avoid deportation. Mangroo decided to marry Mackoon’s mother, Pamela Meagher, “for the papers, for the Green Card.” After marrying Meagher on October 1, 2002, Mangroo became a lawful permanent resident on March 14, 2007. During his five-year marriage to Meagher, Mangroo never lived with Meagher but instead lived with Mackoon, who had followed USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 6 of 19

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him to the United States. As noted, Mangroo divorced Meagher in November 2007. In 2012, Mangroo applied for U.S. citizenship. When an immigration officer came to his home, Mangroo admitted to the fraudulent marriage to Meagher. Mangroo later signed an affidavit stating that he had entered into the fraudulent marriage to obtain residency to support his family. At the hearing, Mangroo admitted he had done something wrong and apologized. Mangroo said that he could not return to Trinidad and Tobago because his younger daughter did not like it there, the drugs and crime were “very bad,” he had no relatives there, and his family would suffer because there is no work and the educational system is “very backward.” Mackoon also testified. Mackoon described Mangroo’s close relationship with their younger daughter Mikayla and said that Mikayla would “suffer tremendously” if Mangroo were removed because of her attachment to him. Mackoon admitted that Mangroo had sisters and brothers in Trinidad and Tobago, but she insisted the family would be homeless if they returned there and that she would be unable to get a job. Mikayla also appeared at the hearing and read a statement describing her close relationship with her father. E. IJ’s Decision At the end of the hearing, the IJ entered an oral decision denying Mangroo’s request for a § 237(a)(1)(H) waiver. In doing so, the IJ found Mangroo and Mackoon credible except to the extent (1) they both claimed Mackoon was unaware of the USCA11 Case: 22-11486 Document: 65-1 Date Filed: 03/14/2025 Page: 7 of 19

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fraudulent marriage to her mother when it occurred and (2) Mangroo claimed Mackoon was not aware he had applied for U.S. citizenship.

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