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March 16, 2022
Russian Immigrant Who was Convicted of Fraud Must Leave the U.S.

Commit Insurance Fraud Go Directly to Jail and the Back to Russia

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/russian-immigrant-who-convicted-fraud-must-leave-us-zalma-esq-cfe and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 4100 posts.

Posted on March 16, 2022 by Barry Zalma

Alexie Legassov, a convicted insurance fraud perpetrator, petitioned the USCA for review of a final order of removal and the denial of a motion to remand. In Alexei Legassov v. Attorney General United States Of America, No. 21-2586, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit (February 24, 2022) the USCA decided it was time he returned to mother Russia.
FACTS

Legassov, a Russian citizen, has lived in the United States since 1993. In 2018, he was convicted in New Jersey of insurance fraud and operating a corporation for criminal purposes. He was sentenced to prison terms of four and five years, respectively, and ordered to pay over $1.2 million in restitution. After the Government initiated removal proceedings in 2019, an Immigration Judge (IJ) concluded that Legassov was removable as a noncitizen convicted of two or more offenses for which the aggregated sentences were five years or more and as a noncitizen convicted of a crime involving moral.

In August 2020, Legassov, proceeding pro se, applied for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). At a hearing in January 2021, Legassov testified that he entered the United States due to fears relating to his father’s involvement in investigating the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Although the official cause of his father’s death in 1988 was suicide, Legassov claimed that the Russian government had his father killed and he was warned to stop discussing that topic. Legassov stated that he was not harmed while in Russia, but he believed that the KGB initiated charges against him in 1996 after his departure and that he had been included on a wanted list.

The IJ ruled on several grounds that Legassov did not qualify for relief. In addition to making an adverse credibility finding, the IJ concluded that the one-year filing deadline barred the asylum application, and Legassov failed to provide a significantly changed circumstance to extend the time for filing. Even aside from the one-year bar, the IJ explained that he would deny aylum as a matter of discretion due to Legassov’s criminal history. The IJ likewise decided that Legassov had committed a “particularly serious crime” which rendered him ineligible for withholding of removal, and that Legassov did not qualify for CAT relief where he had not shown it would be more likely than not that he would be tortured upon his return to Russia. The IJ also denied voluntary departure.

On appeal, the BIA agreed with the IJ’s reasoning, rejected all grounds advanced in Legassov’s counseled brief, and dismissed the appeal. The BIA also denied a motion to remand because the evidence submitted did not rebut any of the IJ’s findings.
ANALYSIS

Notably, Legassov has not disputed that he is removable on the statutory grounds cited by the agency based on his criminal history (for committing a CIMT and for convictions of offenses carrying aggregated sentences of five or more years’ imprisonment). Also, he did not previously challenge the IJ’s conclusions that he was ineligible for asylum, withholding of removal, or CAT relief on appeal in the BIA; although he now claims, in very general terms, that he was eligible.

What remains are jurisdictional and due process arguments Legassov raised before, and the court rejected them for largely the same reasons the BIA did.

Legassov argues in his petition that the immigration court violated his due process rights by failing to adequately explain the proceedings or to develop the record. However, the record reveals no due process violation in Legassov’s proceedings.

the IJ explained to Legassov how he might retain an attorney and, after granting one continuance, the IJ was poised to grant another for Legassov to find an attorney. However, Legassov demurred and asked if the proceedings could move forward, and the IJ obliged. The IJ explained that Legassov would testify in support of his asylum application at the next hearing, and the IJ gave him time to submit documentation; Legassov did both. Legassov does not detail what else the IJ should have explained. Further, he has not shown that any deficiency prejudiced him, which is fatal to a due process claim.

Legassov did not show the requisite prejudice. In addition to the State Department report on country conditions in Russia in the record, the IJ considered statements of Legassov’s relatives and an article concerning the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Legassov does not state what other evidence that the IJ should have helped him obtain or how he was prejudiced by the absence of that material.

Finally, Legassov requested a remand so that his CAT claim could be considered in light of “new” evidence, including his birth certificate, articles about the Chernobyl disaster and his father, and articles about Russian intelligence activities. However, as the BIA explained, this evidence did not meaningfully address the shortcomings of his claims. Therefore, the BIA appropriately denied remand.

The BIA may deny a remand motion where the movant has not established prima facie eligibility for relief, fails to introduce previously unavailable, material evidence, or would not be entitled to discretionary relief even if the motion were granted.

Accordingly, the petition for review was denied.
ZALMA OPINION

In 1993 the United States allowed a Russian Criminal, Legassov, who was wanted by the then KGB, to enter the United States and enter into multiple state and federal crimes until he was finally caught, prosecuted and convicted and sentence to five years in a federal prison and an order to remove him from the U.S. back to Russia. He used the judicial system including appeals to the Third Circuit. He should never have been allowed in the U.S. and remaining in the U.S. violates the law as did his insurance fraud. He should be put on a plane and sent to the mercy of Vladamir Putin. Perhaps he will be conscripted into the Russian military.

(c) 2022 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.

Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, now limits his practice to service as an insurance consultant specializing in insurance coverage, insurance claims handling, insurance bad faith and insurance fraud almost equally for insurers and policyholders. He also serves as an arbitrator or mediator for insurance related disputes. He practiced law in California for more than 44 years as an insurance coverage and claims handling lawyer and more than 54 years in the insurance business. He is available at http://www.zalma.com and [email protected].

Over the last 54 years Barry Zalma has dedicated his life to insurance, insurance claims and the need to defeat insurance fraud. He has created a library of books and other materials to make it possible for insurers and their claims staff to become insurance claims professionals.

Subscribe to Zalma on Insurance at locals.com https://zalmaoninsurance.local.com/subscribe. Subscribe to Excellence in Claims Handling at https://barryzalma.substack.com/welcome. Write to Mr. Zalma at [email protected];

http://www.zalma.com; http://zalma.com/blog; I publish daily articles at https://zalma.substack.com, Go to the podcast Zalma On Insurance at https://anchor.fm/barry-zalma; Follow Mr. Zalma on Twitter at https://twitter.com/bzalma; Go to Barry Zalma videos at Rumble.com at https://rumble.com/c/c-262921; Go to Barry Zalma on YouTube- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCysiZklEtxZsSF9DfC0Expg; Go to the Insurance Claims Library – https://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library/ Read posts from Barry Zalma at Go to the Insurance Claims Library – https://zalma.com/blog/insurance-claims-library/

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Hiscox Insurance Company (“Hiscox”) moved the USDC to Dismiss a suit for failure to state a claim because the insured reported its claim more than 60 days after expiration of the policy.

In Mluxe Williamsburg, LLC v. Hiscox Insurance Company, Inc., et al., No. 4:25-cv-00002, United States District Court, E.D. Missouri, Eastern Division (May 22, 2025) the trial court’s judgment was affirmed.

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Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter – June 1, 2025

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The Source for the Insurance Fraud Professional
Posted on June 2, 2025 by Barry Zalma

Post 5087

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Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL June 1, 2025 at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ZIFL-06-01-2025.pdf

Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter – June 1, 2025

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gw-Hgww9 and at https://lnkd.in/gF8QAq4d, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5050 posts.

ZIFL – Volume 29, Issue 11

The Source for the Insurance Fraud Professional

Read the full article and the full issue of ZIFL June 1, 2025 at https://lnkd.in/gTWZUnnF

Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 29th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at ...

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May 30, 2025
Plain Language of Policy Enforced

No Coverage if Home Vacant for More Than 60 Days

Failure to Respond To Counterclaim is an Admission of All Allegations

Post 5085

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gbWPjHub and at https://lnkd.in/gZ9ztA-P, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5050 posts.

In Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company v. Rebecca Massey, Civil Action No. 2:25-cv-00124, United States District Court, S.D. West Virginia, Charleston Division (May 22, 2025) Defendant Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company's (“Nationwide”) motion for Default Judgment against Plaintiff Rebecca Massey (“Plaintiff”) for failure to respond to a counterclaim and because the claim was excluded by the policy.

BACKGROUND

On February 26, 2022, Plaintiff's home was destroyed by a fire. At the time of this accident, Plaintiff had a home insurance policy with Nationwide. Plaintiff reported the fire loss to Nationwide, which refused to pay for the damages under the policy because the home had been vacant for more than 60 days.

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May 15, 2025
Zalma's Insurance Fraud Letter - May 15, 2025

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The Source for the Insurance Fraud Professional

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gK_P4-BK and at https://lnkd.in/g2Q7BHBu, and at https://zalma.com/blog and at https://lnkd.in/gjyMWHff.

Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 29th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at http://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/ You can read the full issue of the May 15, 2025 issue at http://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/ZIFL-05-15-2025.pdf
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Health Care Fraud Trial Results in Murder for Hire of Witness

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In United States of America v. Louis Age, Jr.; Stanton Guillory; Louis Age, III; Ronald Wilson, Jr., No. 22-30656, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit (April 25, 2025) the Fifth Circuit dealt with the ...

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CGL Is Not a Medical Malpractice Policy

Professional Health Care Services Exclusion Effective

Post 5073

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/g-f6Tjm5 and at https://lnkd.in/gx3agRzi, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5050 posts.

This opinion is the recommendation of a Magistrate Judge to the District Court Judge and involves Travelers Casualty Insurance Company and its duty to defend the New Mexico Bone and Joint Institute (NMBJI) and its physicians in a medical negligence lawsuit brought by Tervon Dorsey.

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April 30, 2025
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Post 5062

Posted on April 30, 2025 by Barry Zalma

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The temptation to do everything outside the law was the downfall of the brothers Karamazov. The brothers had escaped prison in the old Soviet Union by immigrating to the United...

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