Overview
- Maj. Collin L. Welch pleaded guilty to theft of government money and unlawfully inducing aliens to enter and remain in the United States.
- Prosecutors say Welch began a relationship in 2019, used a fake divorce decree to marry a Mongolian woman in 2022, and remarried her in Virginia in 2024 while still legally married to his first wife.
- Federal records show Welch charged tens of thousands of dollars in travel and hotel bills to a government travel card and created false receipts and travel vouchers to hide the misuse.
- When the woman and her daughter stayed on expired tourist visas, Welch allegedly fabricated permanent-resident approvals, Social Security numbers and other papers, paid their expenses through March 2026, and tried to cover rent with forged checks after an eviction.
- Investigators from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office handled the case; Welch agreed to forfeit $54,000, faces an estimated 10–16 months in prison, and is scheduled for sentencing on Dec. 3, 2026.